


The mighty have fallen

by Xenobia



Series: "The mighty have fallen" universe [1]
Category: Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Drama, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-10-30
Updated: 2008-10-30
Packaged: 2017-10-23 03:39:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 22
Words: 103,739
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/245909
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Xenobia/pseuds/Xenobia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Sephiroth is discovered in stasis in a hidden lab constructed by Hojo, Cloud is forced to take on the role of his jailer or allow the government to execute him. Multi-chapter, yaoi.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

"The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 1

 **Summary:** When Sephiroth is discovered in stasis in a hidden lab constructed by Hojo, Cloud is forced to take on the role of his jailer or allow the government to execute him.

 **Author's Note:** I thought it would be interesting to put Sephiroth in a "middle" role for a change, instead of being absolutely dominant or absolutely submissive.

 **Disclaimer:** All Final Fantasy characters are the property of Squaresoft. I don't make any money from this and it is strictly for harmless entertainment. This is an exercise of imagination and entertainment, and should never be interpreted as anything more.

* * *

He thought he must be dreaming.

It couldn't be Sephiroth he saw on the television. It was some other man being filmed by the nightly news, lying there on a hospital bed. Cloud shook his head, feeling insanity biting at his mind. "No…fuck, no," he murmured. His hand clenched on the longneck bottle sitting in front of him as he stared up at the screen.

"Tifa, get out here!"

Hurried footsteps came from the kitchen area behind the bar. "What is it?" Tifa inquired as she came out. In one hand she held a glass, and in the other, a soapy sponge. Seventh Heaven was her pride and joy, rebuilt in Kalm town a year after the Meteor incident. Midgar was still being rebuilt, but the only person in the circle of friends who seemed to have any interest in returning to the ravaged city was Barret. He was away, helping with the reconstruction as usual. Neither Cloud nor Tifa could bring themselves to return to Midgar or their childhood home, Nibelheim. There were too many painful memories in both places. Kalm was the ideal town to live in and recover from the trauma of their ordeals.

Cloud pointed up at the television wordlessly, his ice-blue eyes stunned. Tifa looked up, saw the man on the television, and dropped the glass she was holding. It shattered as it hit the hardwood floor, but she paid it no mind. Her wet hand went to her mouth, and her eyes went wide and stunned. "Oh, Cloud…that isn't…it can't be!"

"Who else can it be?" Cloud said angrily.

"It could be a clone," Tifa argued in a trembling voice.

He considered this. Yes, it could be a clone. They had made the mistake of thinking they had killed Sephiroth more than once before, only to learn they were copies. Still, Cloud stared at the flickering picture and felt something that he couldn't describe. The man's fine-boned features were achingly beautiful…too perfect for a mere human to possess.

Clones could be made to resemble Sephiroth, sound like him and even move like him…but something about the man on the screen was different. Cloud felt a familiar but nearly forgotten rush that he hadn't truly felt in any of his battles with Sephiroth since the fateful day in Nibelheim. He didn't understand it, but his instincts were shouting at him that the man on the news was really Sephiroth.

Under the slim hope that he might be wrong, Cloud said, "Turn the volume up, Tifa. We've got to hear what's going on."

Her hand shook as she stretched on her tiptoes and reached up to comply.

They listened intently as the news broadcaster's voice came in through the speaker. "…an unidentified male approximately between the age of twenty-five and thirty. Shinra inc. denies trying to cover up possible dangers that the old Mako reactors might pose to surrounding communities."

The screen changed to show Reeve, who had helped found the World Restoration Organization and was still working with Rufus Shinra to repair domestic and environmental damages. Cameras were flashing, and microphones with various news station numbers were being pushed in his face. "Mr. Tuesti, what do you have to say about the rumors that Shinra has been trying to hide the discovery of the young man in professor Hojo's laboratory?"

Reeve's mildly handsome face was carefully neutral as he responded. "We only recently found the hidden laboratory. We had no idea that it was there until we began to clear out the late Professor's labs."

"Sir, is it true that the old Mako reactors pose a health risk to the surrounding communities? People are suggesting that John Doe's condition is proof of that."

"We've tested the inactive reactors for any pollution threats. The man who was found in the lab has been there for over five years. The records we found in Hojo's lab suggested that the young man was retrieved from somewhere in the Northern continent. We don't know what sort of research Professor Hojo was doing on this young man."

Another reporter said, "Mr. Tuesti, there are rumors that the man found in the lab is Sephiroth. Can you confirm this?"

Reeve went still for a moment. There were few people in the world that hadn't heard of Sephiroth, but very few knew of his involvement with the Meteor incident. Most people didn't even know what he looked like, in fact. His name was whispered with admiration when people spoke of the greatest Soldiers. Reeve spoke in a controlled tone. "We don't know for certain. We have reason to believe that this man is dangerous…or at least, he could be when and if he wakes from his catatonic state. I'm going to send for an expert to help assess the situation."

"What do you intend to do if this man is as dangerous as you're hinting at, sir?"

Reeve took a moment to answer, carefully considering his words first. "The science department believes they have a way to control the criminally insane. They've found favorable results upon testing it. If this person proves to be a threat, we'll try the device created by our scientists. We just need the right person to be the keeper." His brown eyes looked straight at the screen, almost seeming to stare at Cloud.

Reeve declared that the interview was over, and the reporters tried to follow him. The screen cut back to the main news, where they went on to the weather forecast.

There was a message there. Cloud looked at Tifa, who was staring at him with a confused frown. "What?"

"Cloud, he said that the man on the screen was in there for more than five years…weren't you listening?"

"Yeah…" he shook his head. "How is that possible?"

"Cloud, you said that you threw Sephiroth into the reactor, that day that Nibelheim burned. Hojo found you and Zack afterwards and kept you in his lab. If the person they showed in that hospital bed is the real Sephiroth, then that means that we never really fought him at all! Hojo must have found him when he found you and Zack, and he's been laying in a coma for all these years." She took a deep breath. "I think the only time you've ever fought the real Sephiroth was in Nibelheim, Cloud."

Cloud felt sick. "The day that the Weapons woke up, when we found Sephiroth frozen in the crater…Hojo was there, too. He said something about Sephiroth drifting in the Lifestream and ending up there." Cloud cast his mind back to that day, struggling to remember. He'd been under Sephiroth's influence at the time, compelled to bring the Black Materia to him. At least, he'd always told himself it was Sephiroth manipulating him. Now it seemed more logical that it had been Jenova all along, controlling him through her cells that had been injected into his body, just like the clones.

He had never gotten over having to kill Sephiroth, even as he had never forgiven him for all that he did. Some part of Cloud always had and always would be in love with the man that he had admired so much as a cadet. He'd never used the word "love" to describe his feelings to his friends before, always falling back on hero worship as an excuse. He couldn't understand it himself and he knew they wouldn't.

Tifa followed his line of thought. "Hojo could have taken Sephiroth with him when he left the crater. We know Jenova can make convincing copies of him. I think it adds up, Cloud."

Cloud pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and pushed the power switch. It was out of juice. No wonder Reeve hadn't contacted him about this. There WAS a silent message from him in that news broadcast. He wouldn't be surprised if Shinra representatives came into town at any moment.

"Shit…we've got to get to Junon."

* * *

-To be continued


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 2

"So I was right…this is Sephiroth." Cloud stood beside the hospital bed, where the unconscious, silver-haired man lay. In his hands were the project reports written by Hojo. As they suspected, the scientist had retrieved Sephiroth from the crater before leaving. The catatonic General had been alive and hooked up to some bizarre machinery for all these years.

Reeve nodded. "Yeah. The tubes that connect him to this machine have been sustaining him, while at the same time keeping him from waking up. Our science team described it to me as a sort of man-made stasis. Hojo did it to preserve him until the Jenova cells could finish repairing all the damage. I thought it was for the best for us to leave him the way we found him until I could get you here."

"I don't understand," Tifa pondered, "Hojo couldn't have been motivated by fatherly love and he had hundreds of other subjects he could have used. What drove him to take such extreme measures for Sephiroth?"

"Sephiroth was Hojo's greatest accomplishment and he was obsessed with him. As you can see in the reports, he tried to rebuild a new Sephiroth while the real one was in stasis. That way if the original never recovered, Hojo wouldn't lose him. Not exactly a normal or healthy Father/Son dynamic, is it?"

"No," Cloud agreed, his lapis eyes flicking from Sephiroth to the documents in his hands. "It's fucking twisted."

Tifa moved to stand beside Reeve, her hands clasped tightly before her hips. She looked like she could scream or cry or both. "Then this is the real Sephiroth," she said in a low voice. "Cloud is the only one of us who ever really fought him. How could we have been so stupid? All that time, we were just fighting copies!"

"Hey, none of us could have known," Reeve said immediately, putting a comforting hand on the young woman's shoulder, "If you think about it, Sephiroth's life is kind of sad."

"Sad?" Echoed Tifa. "Oh yeah, it's sad, alright! All that effort to save the Planet, and the threat is still here! I say we kill him while he's out. He won't feel anything, and the world would be better off."

Cloud went to her and took her in his arms. "Tifa, could you really do that? Look at him." He turned her towards the patient.

She stared at Sephiroth. Asleep, he seemed so innocent of the crimes he had committed. He was deceptively beautiful…angelic looking, in fact. It was difficult to see him as the same man that had committed so much destruction in Nibelheim. "That isn't fair, Cloud."

He smiled at her, though his blue eyes tender and sad. "I know. How do you think I feel? I used to worship this guy, and now I'm standing here deciding whether he can be allowed to live. All I know is, despite what he's done, I can't be the one to kill him. Not this time, Tifa. I just can't do it again." His voice cracked and for a horrifying moment, he thought he was going to start crying. He swallowed and brought himself under control quickly.

"I'm sorry I had to drag you both into this," Reeve said sincerely, "I know how painful it's got to be. Even if he didn't kill Aeris, summon Meteor and generally try to destroy all life as we know it, this guy is a ticking time bomb. You know I'm against the death penalty, but there's a way we can have him executed while he's still comatose. I wanted to hear from you that it's the only way, first. Rufus made it clear that if I can't get your cooperation, Sephiroth will be executed."

"Cloud, he's still guilty of killing my Father and several other townsfolk," Tifa reminded him passionately, "and he nearly killed you, me and Zack! If you hadn't hurt him so bad, he probably would have moved on to do all those other things."

"We don't know that, Tifa," Cloud said in a raw voice as his emotions rose again. He was shaking, struggling for the right answer. "We don't have any idea whether he could have been helped or not! Nobody got the chance to try. He lost his mind when he found out how he was made, and even then, he only got it half right! He had scraps of information to go by and Jenova herself influencing him. If someone could have shown him the truth, maybe he never would have gone on his rampage. He wanted revenge on everyone for hurting his 'Mother' and her people."

"That's the thing, folks…" Reeve interjected, "We DON'T know. We don't know what was going through his head or how strong Jenova's influence was on him. All we have are theories, because nobody was ever close enough to Sephiroth to understand him. The only person here who even comes close is Cloud. That's why I wanted you here. I'm hoping that you can help me come up with a solution."

Cloud still held Tifa in his arms, and he was no longer sure whether he was doing it for her comfort or his own. He stared at the sleeping figure on the bed and swallowed. "If we had to…kill him…how would it be done? He's not easy to kill, you know. The Jenova cells regenerate fast."

"I know. The science team ran some tests and they found that the same treatment that kills cancer cells can kill Jenova cells as well." Reeve sighed. "If it comes to it, we'll basically be giving him lethal injection. I'll leave him hooked up to the machines so that he won't wake up and feel anything. An overdose of cancer medication will break down the Jenova cells and kill them off, and another injection will be administrated to stop his heart. It's the most humane way I can think of to do it, if we have to."

Cloud closed his eyes and rested his cheek against Tifa's. He was coming closer and closer to tears. "I just don't know, Reeve…I don't know if I can do it! I hate him for what he did but I also pity him. His own Father used him as a lab rat and basically kept him as a slave his whole life."

Tifa bit her lip. She didn't want to hear about how bad Sephiroth had it…she didn't want to feel pity for the man. She wanted the threat removed! However, a little part of her mind wondered what it must have been like for Sephiroth as a child. He probably never knew human affection, never laughed or played as she did when she was little. Could anyone grow up to be stable and compassionate after living a life like that?

She shuddered as she recalled how she had found Cloud at the train station that day. Hojo had done terrible things to him while he had him in his clutches. The blond boy could barely even speak when she first found him, and he was so traumatized that it took weeks for him to regain control of himself. Sephiroth had endured treatment like that for most of his life. Would his execution be justice, or simply revenge?

Reeve watched his friends carefully for a few moments, reading their reactions. After a while, he said; "There's another way. I just wanted to see how you felt, before proposing it."

Cloud looked at Tifa, and Tifa looked at Cloud. They were both wary. "What's the other way?" Cloud asked.

"First, I want you both to come to my office. I have to show you one of the surviving video recordings we found. This guy never had a childhood."

Stunned by the pity in Reeve's eyes and his words, Tifa could only stare at the president for a moment. She considered refusing to view the video, not wanting to hop onto the pity wagon with Cloud and Reeve. Looking at Cloud's dear, miserable face, she gave in if for no other reason than to give her friend the support he so clearly needed from her.

* * *

"This is an early surveillance tape," Reeve explained as Cloud and Tifa seated themselves on a leather couch in his office. He held up the tape with a frown. "Most of them were too corroded to use, but we found a box that had some stored in it that would still play. This is a recording of one of the tests that Hojo did on his 'son', when Sephiroth was still a small child." He hesitated before putting the tape in the player that sat on top of his television set. "I've gotta warn you both, it's pretty upsetting. I never hated Hojo so much before I watched this."

"Put it in," Cloud said firmly.

Reeve nodded and pushed the tape into the machine. He then walked back to his desk, sat down in the chair, and picked up a remote. He pushed a button and set the remote aside, threading his fingers together and resting his hands on the desk.

At first there was only static on the monitor. Then it abruptly changed to a black and white picture of a tiled room. The camera was focused down on the room from another area that was behind a pane of glass. Hojo's distracted voice spoke from an unseen direction. "Yesterday marked Sephiroth's ninth birthday. I believe he is old enough to test his abilities against something stronger than previously. Security measures have been taken, of course. I can't risk losing my prized experiment, after all."

Cloud clenched his jaw and curled his hands into fists at that hated, dispassionate voice and Tifa laid one hand over his and squeezed reassuringly. As they watched, a door in the far wall of the enclosed room slid open and men in white ushered a child in. The color of the child's hair was impossible to tell on a black and white screen, but it was pale. There was little doubt that the boy was Sephiroth. He was staring around the room with frightened, slit-pupiled eyes as he was brought into the room. "No more…" the little boy's faint voice moaned.

The white robed men left him then and when he tried to follow them back out, he suddenly clutched his head and cried out as if in pain. "Stay in there, Sephiroth," Hojo's voice spoke through a speaker, "do as you're told, and the pain will stop."

The child had fallen to his knees, weeping raggedly and tearing at his collar-length hair. After a moment, he stopped clutching his head as if whatever was effecting him had faded. A light came on above another door and Sephiroth backed against the wall. "Let me out!" He cried.

"You can come out after you've preformed," Hojo promised in his unfeeling voice. "Now be a good boy and I'll reward you with some play time today."

Cloud shuddered impulsively. "Where the hell was his real mother when this was going on?" he asked. He knew that Sephiroth grew up thinking his mother's name was Jenova and that she died in childbirth, but the only thing he knew about Lucrecia were little bits and pieces he'd gotten out of Vincent.

"As far as I know, she wasn't allowed to interact with him," Reeve answered, "She may have even been dead when this tape was recorded…there's not much I can tell you about Lucrecia's fate."

Their attention was riveted back to the television when a child's scream of fear pierced the air. The door with the light over it had opened and a creature of nightmares lurched out. It was all fangs and tentacles and eyeballs and it left a trail of slime as it slowly moved into the room. Sephiroth ran to the door that he had come in from and began to pummel it with his small fists. Tifa bit her lip, and tears of horror and pity filled her eyes and blurred her vision as the little boy on the screen begged to be let out.

"Kill it, Sephiroth. Kill it for me and we'll be finished for the day," Hojo's voice coaxed. "If you don't, it's going to get you."

"Mommy," the child cried in a voice near hysteria, "Mommmy!"

"You killed your mother on the way into the world, Sephiroth," Hojo's voice snapped impatiently. "She can't help you. Only you can put a stop to this."

Tifa's breath hitched and she glanced at Cloud from the corner of his eye to see that his face was tense and beaded with sweat. "Bastard," the blond snarled.

The creature dragged itself forward, having sensed its prey with whatever perceptions it used. The fangs glistened with slime and the horrible eyes seemed eager.

"Kill it, Sephiroth! Obey me!" Hojo said angrily.

Sephiroth backed away from the horror that was coming for him but for all his obvious terror, his eyes were calculating. Even as a child, he was brilliant. Cloud could see that the little boy was doing his best to control his fear and think. Anyone else his age in that situation would probably have been helpless with terror.

Sephiroth began to clutch his head again, clenching his teeth. Hojo was using whatever device he had at his disposal to compel the little boy. Sephiroth sank to the floor again, sobbing in fear and pain, and Cloud found himself muttering, "Fight!" as the creature came closer.

An appendage shot out and wrapped around his arm and Sephiroth screamed as he was dragged towards the monstrosity. Kicking and scrabbling at the tiles, the kid was drawn inexorably towards those gnashing, razor sharp teeth.

Tifa completely forgot that the boy on the screen was Sephiroth, in her distress at what she was seeing. She stood up without even realizing it, her instincts telling her to charge in and protect the child. There was nothing she could do for him, though. She stood trembling as Cloud got up and put his arms around her. It was a small comfort to know that Sephiroth obviously survived this ordeal.

Just when it seemed that the monster was going to drag the screaming child to it's many, waiting mouths, something snapped within Sephiroth. The little boy's eyes began to glow and a nimbus of light surrounded his slight frame. With a scream of agony and fury, Sephiroth opened his free hand and pointed it in the direction of the creature. Bright light shot from his open palm and struck the monster. The beam burned a hole into its flesh, and a gurgling, unearthly cry emerged from its many throats.

"Again, Sephiroth." Hojo's voice prompted. There was emotion in it this time…excitement.

One of the mouths bit into Sephiroth's captured arm and he screamed. The light flared again and again, until the creature's flesh began to fall from it in charred chunks. The smoke and light began to obscure the camera view and all that could be heard were the screams of both the child and the monster, underscored by a sizzling sound.

"Get those fans turned on!" Hojo ordered, "I can't see!"

The noise died down, to be replaced by the electrical buzz of the air conditioning fans in the room. Ragged, low sobs could be heard from the interior and when the smoke cleared, Sephiroth was revealed sitting with his knees pulled up to his chest. Before him was the charred carcass of the creature, twitching in its death throes.

"Excellent, Sephiroth." Hojo whispered in glee, "You are becoming more powerful than I had dreamed."

The child looked up, straight at the camera. His eyes were still glowing, but his face was streaked with tears and black blood. "Let me out now! You promised!" He cradled his bleeding arm to his chest as he glared up at the camera.

"Indeed I did," Hojo agreed, and the door that Sephiroth had first entered from opened again. "First, you need medical attention."

The screen went black suddenly, then lit up with snow.

"That's all there is," Reeve said heavily, turning the power off and standing up. He wiped his eyes and finished, "You see? After looking at that, I couldn't give the order to execute him."

~ _No, you absolved your guilt by putting the burden on my shoulders, instead,_ ~ Cloud thought with anger. ~ _But, Hojo had some kind of device to control him. What are you up to, Reeve?_ ~

When he looked back at the president, he saw the sorrow etched in the lines of his face. In a soft voice, Reeve said, "We have three choices. One—execute him. Two—leave him hooked up to that machine and lock him away, and pray he never wakes up. Or, we can try the third option." He opened a drawer in his desk and produced a metal case. Opening it up, he motioned for them to come closer.

Both of them complied and upon inspection, they saw what looked like a tiny computer chip lying in the bottom of the little case. The chip was about the size of a pinky nail. "What's that?" Cloud asked, though the sinking feeling in his stomach told him he already had an idea.

"It's the 'leash' that Hojo used to control Sephiroth," Reeve explained. "It has to be implanted into the brain. Whoever has it grafted to them will have the ability to affect certain nerve receptors in Sephiroth's body."

Cloud felt a chill go up his spine. "And who did you have in mind for this?"

Both Tifa and Reeve looked at him and he groaned. "Look, I'm not sure I want that kind of power over him…I've got too many conflicting feelings."

"But you'd never use him as a weapon," Reeve argued, "The other candidates are too ambitious to be trusted. You've got a connection to him, Cloud. You might hate him sometimes, but you're not cruel."

"So you want me to be his keeper, is that it? You're telling me this thing is supposed to make the great Sephiroth my slave?"

Reeve blinked and then he flushed. "Well, I guess you could put it that way. Let's just say you're the only man I'd trust to take on this responsibility. He's too damned dangerous to be left alone, Cloud. This will ensure that he can't cause any trouble, without us having to kill him."

"But Hojo didn't seem to have control of him that day that he burned Nibelheim," Tifa reminded them both darkly.

"Hojo got cocky," Reeve said easily, "He believed he had Sephiroth subdued and we've found evidence that he removed his own control chip because he was convinced that Sephiroth was his…body, mind and soul. Of course, our General here played along for a while, biding his time. He lost his marbles before he could exact the revenge he had planned, though."

Cloud rubbed his temples. "So, if I don't agree to this, what would happen?"

Reeve grimaced. "I might have to have him executed."

"Fuck…it figures." Cloud thought of the tall, silver-haired man and shook his head. "No matter what he's done, I can't let him be killed. Not when he's helpless like that, and when there's a chance that his actions were brought on by the things that sick bastard did to him."

Ignoring Tifa's soft protest, Cloud straightened up and looked into Reeve's eyes. "I've got conditions, though. If that thing can be altered so that I don't have to cause pain to stop him, I want it done."

Reeve looked intrigued and doubtful at the same time. "What did you have in mind?"

Cloud shrugged. "I don't know…maybe fix it so that I can make him pass out or something. I don't want to give him a migraine every time he annoys me, I just want to keep him from hurting anybody."

Reeve cracked a smile. "You're a nice kid, Cloud."

"Yeah," Cloud echoed uncomfortably, feeling his cheeks warm. "I'm a saint, taking on Hojo's job as his master."

"You're saving his life," Reeve reminded him.

"Whatever," Cloud muttered. "My other condition is that I get to keep my hair. If I wake up bald, someone's getting their ass kicked."

* * *

-To be continued


	3. The mighty have fallen Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 3

"Mr. Strife, can you hear me?" The voice was male and he didn't recognize it.

"Go 'way," Cloud mumbled, disoriented and aching, "head hurts."

"We'll give you something for the pain, Mr. Strife. Can you open your eyes, please? I need to test your pupil reactions."

Cloud frowned in confusion, not understanding the comment. Though he knew he would regret doing it, he cracked a blue eye open warily. Though the light in the room was soft, it hurt his eye and his head. He groaned but forced himself to open the other eye. A blurred figure stood over him. Cloud blinked, trying to bring it into focus.

"The surgery was a success, Mr. Strife," the blurry figure said.

"Surgery?" Cloud repeated, squinting at the figure. His eyes finally focused on the person speaking to him and he was able to make out details. It was a middle-aged man with salt and pepper hair. Cloud deduced by the white lab coat that it was a doctor. He glanced down, realizing that he was in a hospital bed and in one of those awful gowns that opened in the back.

The doctor frowned. "Yes, the surgery. We implanted the chip in your brain as you agreed. If you're experiencing memory loss—"

"No," Cloud interrupted swiftly as everything came rushing back. "I think it was just the anesthetic making me confused. I…I remember now. Sephiroth—where is he?" He looked around, half expecting to find his former rival and current prisoner lying in the other bed in the room.

The doctor seemed relieved. "He's still where you last saw him, Mr. Strife. We don't intend to revive him until you've recovered from the implantation. For now we need to focus on you. Can you sit up?"

Cloud slowly levered himself up on his elbows, wincing at the throbbing in his head as he struggled into a sitting position. "Seems like I can," he grunted as he succeeded. There was a spot on the back right side of his head that hurt the most and he reached up impulsively to touch it. It was then that he realized his head was bandaged and he felt a pang of worry. "Do I still have my hair?" he asked.

The doctor smiled. "Oh yes. The procedure only required us to lift a small piece of your skull away to implant the chip. We did have to shave the site of the incision, but it's only roughly the size of a small coin. The rest of your hair will cover it while it grows back and it only required three stitches."

"That's good to know," Cloud responded absently, wincing as he pressed his fingers lightly over the spot. "I don't suppose you've got any of those pain killers you mentioned on you right now, do you? I feel like I'm waking up after drinking a gallon or so of whiskey."

"I'll send for a nurse to feed some pain medication into your IV, after I've examined your eyes for pupil response. I'll try to be quick."

Cloud nodded, then groaned and wished he hadn't. He hadn't been exaggerating to the doctor; the last time his head ached this bad was when he went on an all night drinking binge with Cid. The examination was uncomfortable because it involved Cloud having to follow a bright, small pen light with his eyes, but it was blessedly short and when it was finished, the doctor did as he promised and sent for someone to bring pain medication.

It was damned good medicine, too. As soon as it reached his veins, Cloud felt the throbbing ache wash away and he couldn't keep his eyes open. He fell into an easy sleep and his last thoughts before losing consciousness were of Sephiroth.

* * *

The next time Cloud woke up it was to visitors. Tifa was there and so was Barret. Cloud yawned and sat up, smiling at them. Tifa returned his smile, but Barret was scowling.

Cloud sighed. "If you came just to tell me what an idiot you think I am for doing this, save your breath."

"Too bad, Spikey," Barret rumbled, "'Cause I'm gonna say it whether you want to hear it or not. At first I didn't believe it when Tifa called me up and told me what you were doing…had to come and see for myself. I thought you had more sense than this."

Cloud shot an annoyed look at Tifa and she crossed her arms over her chest defiantly. "What, did you think I wasn't going to tell everybody that you were having brain surgery, Cloud? They're our friends and I wasn't going to keep something so serious from them."

He sighed and nodded slowly, relieved that the motion didn't cause him as much pain as it had after the procedure. He was recovering fast, thanks to his Mako and Jenova cell enhancements. "I get that, Tifa. I was going to tell everyone after I recovered and figured out the details of how to use this chip. I can argue with people and explain myself much better when I'm not doped up on medication or fighting a headache."

"You like to keep things to yourself," Tifa countered. "I wanted everyone to know in case something went wrong. Lucky for you, Barret was the only one close enough to get here on short notice. I've left messages for the others to let them know you made it through okay but I think you should prepare for their arguments and questions. You and Reeve are the only ones that think this is a good idea, Cloud."

He fell back against the mattress again, covering his eyes with his hands. "I get it, everyone thinks I'm crazy. I already knew they would. None of you can understand, all right? Let's just talk about something else."

Tifa exchanged a look of frustration with Barret and sighed, "Fine. We won't talk about it now, but it's not going to go away."

Cloud knew that all too well. He understood his friends' concerns, he really did. He didn't blame them for their feelings but he couldn't make them understand his, either. They changed the subject and no more was said about Sephiroth or Cloud's dangerous decision to be his custodian.

* * *

Cloud spent a little time each day visiting the observation room where Sephiroth was kept. He never said anything, knowing that Sephiroth wouldn't hear him even if he could think of something to say. He just watched him for a while. It was oddly comforting to look upon the general's sleeping countenance.

Reeve visited every couple of days to check on Cloud's progress and Tifa was kind enough to bring him some of his own clothes so that he didn't have to wear a gown. On the third day of his recovery, Cloud was visiting Sephiroth and inspiration struck him as he gazed down on the man's sculpted, angelic features. He had an opportunity here to do something that he'd always wanted to do but never dared. His teeth worried his lower lip as he cast a furtive look about to be sure there weren't any people around to witness what he was about to do. Seeing that the coast was clear, Cloud leaned over Sephiroth's bed and slowly reached out his right hand.

He hesitated when his fingertips were an inch away from the man's face, irrationally worrying that the instant he touched him, Sephiroth's feline eyes would snap open and he'd throttle him. Cloud swallowed and made himself continue. It felt oddly like blasphemy when his fingertips made contact with the general's smooth, cool skin. He allowed them to glide over the high cheekbones, the bridge of the nose and the thick, long eyelashes. Cloud smiled slightly and he relaxed, taking further liberties. He softly traced the line of Sephiroth's cheek to his angled jaw, then on to his chin. Finally, he brushed his first two fingers over the man's parted, shapely lips and allowed himself to fantasize about what it would be like to kiss them.

"Cloud." A deep and resonant voice said softly from behind him.

Cloud's heart leapt in his throat and he yanked his hand away from Sephiroth's face as he turned around. Vincent stood a few feet away, looking at him with an unreadable expression on his pale face. How the former Turk always managed to move so quietly was beyond Cloud and he wondered how long he'd been standing there. How much had he seen and what sort of an impression might it have made?

Vincent stepped closer, his ruby eyes leaving Cloud to fall on Sephiroth. In his left hand, he held a slim black briefcase. Cloud was too startled by his sudden appearance to ask about it. Whatever thoughts were behind those intense eyes were well hidden. Cloud shifted his weight from one foot to the other uncomfortably, eyeing the black-haired gunman warily.

"I know, you think I'm making a mistake, right?" Cloud finally said when Vincent didn't speak or change his expression. The red gaze fell on him again, expressing neither anger nor concern.

"I think you're taking a risk," Corrected Vincent softly before releasing him from his gaze to look again at Sephiroth. "Whether it's a mistake or not has yet to be seen. It could go either way."

It shouldn't have surprised him that Vincent wasn't trying to dissuade him. Of all his friends, the gunman had his own emotional investment where Sephiroth was concerned. "I just couldn't kill him again," Cloud said, looking down at the silver-haired swordsman. "They put his life in my hands and…I just…" He shook his head and lowered his eyes, unable to articulate.

Vincent studied him silently for a moment before responding: "I understand. I'd rather not be put in the position either. No matter his sins, he's Lucrecia's child. He might have been mine as well, if fate had taken a different turn."

Cloud looked up, prompted by Vincent's words and the faint regret in his voice. As hard as the battles against Sephiroth had been on him, it must have been torture on Vincent. He didn't think the gunman had any paternal feelings toward Sephiroth but he'd loved the woman that gave birth to him. "Sorry Vincent," Cloud said uncomfortably. "I don't think any of us paid enough attention to what this has been like for you."

Vincent shook his head, his expression softening just a little. "I never asked any of you to. My feelings…are private. I only spoke them aloud to you because I thought you should know someone understands. I would have preferred to watch over Sephiroth if I had been allowed, but circumstances demanded another path."

Cloud nodded somberly, feeling a swell of gratitude. "They say I should be recovered enough in a few more days to make full use of the chip. When that happens they'll wake Sephiroth up. Are you going to stick around for it?"

"Regrettably not. I came to say hello and to give you this." The raven-haired man lifted the briefcase that he'd brought in with him.

Cloud took it and frowned. "What's in here?"

"Information," Vincent answered, his gaze again going to Sephiroth. He nodded his head at the comatose young man. "For him. Everything I could find from what was left of Hojo's lab. I doubted he would believe your word alone, so I compiled all of the research documents and records I could salvage that contained the truth behind Sephiroth's origins. The rest is up to you, Cloud."

The blond swordsman stared at the case, then at his friend. He'd worried about how he was going to convince Sephiroth that he wasn't lying when he told him the truth. Now he had evidence to back it up. It must have been a lot of work for Vincent to put this information together and it was honestly the most supportive thing any of his friends had done so far. "Thank you," Cloud said sincerely.

"Let me know how it turns out," Vincent said with a faint smile. "I hope for the sake of the planet, Sephiroth and you and I that your plan succeeds, Cloud. Farewell."

He turned to leave and Cloud silently watched him go, wondering if anyone would ever truly know Vincent Valentine.

* * *

By the end of the week, the headaches were gone and the stitches were removed. If Cloud had been a normal man it would have been a much slower process. When the doctors said that Cloud was recovered enough for them to release Sephiroth from the stasis machine, Reeve discussed it with him.

"He'll probably be disoriented and weak at first, but I don't know how he'd react to waking up and seeing you," Reeve said. "Let's face it, the last time he saw you was when you tossed him into the heart of a reactor. It's up to you if you want to be there when he wakes up or if you'd rather let the staff explain his situation to him first."

Cloud blinked, amazed that he hadn't thought of any of that himself. "Maybe it's a good idea for your people to tell him what's going on, before he sees me," Cloud said as he lowered his bright blue eyes to the glass of water he held in his hand. "It'll give him time to cool off."

Reeve nodded. "I think that's a good idea. Now, I think I should explain how your chip works. I'm sure you've got questions."

"Yeah," Cloud agreed. "I'd like to know what changes they've made to the functions and how to activate them, for starters."

"Okay, here goes," Reeve answered, "they were able to change the function that stimulated pain receptors to make him feel pain. Now it manipulates neurotransmitters and tells his brain to go to sleep. You'll be able to make him have a nap whenever you want, and all you have to do is concentrate on it. They wanted to give it a function to make him dizzy but I told them you aren't interested in causing discomfort, so they came up with the power snooze button instead."

Cloud raised his eyebrows. "I was expecting them to come up with a way for me to make him black out, but this is better. It's kind of funny, to think I'll be able to make the great Sephiroth take power naps when he gets out of line." He felt laughter threatening to break free and his lips twitched.

"Neat, isn't it?" Reeve agreed with a smirk. "Sometimes I wish I had the brains to be a scientist. Anyway, another interesting feature of the chip is that it limits his ability to do violence toward you."

Cloud's brows drew together and he frowned. "How limited are we talking, and how does it stop him?"

"He can't act on any thoughts of deliberately killing you, basically. He can't try to smother you, poison you, cut your throat, drop a piano on your head or anything else that would kill you. His body would just refuse to do it. He can still hit you or shove you, but he can't carry it to a level where it would result in your death. Say the two of you were dueling and he spotted an opening. Even if he wanted to take advantage of it to stab you, his body wouldn't comply."

Cloud wasn't sure if he liked this particular feature. "That seems like overkill when I can already force him to fall asleep if he does anything like that."

"But you can only do that if you know it's coming, Cloud." Reeve's expression was grim. "You still need to sleep and eat. The inhibiting feature ensures that Sephiroth won't be able to take advantage of your vulnerable moments. Hojo may have been a twisted bastard but he knew Sephiroth would kill him if he ever got the chance and he knew how to make sure that wouldn't happen."

Cloud heaved a sigh and nodded. "Okay, when you put it that way I get it. What else do I need to know?" He didn't say aloud that Sephiroth was too proud to resort to underhanded attacks. He was the sort of man that would prefer the more direct approach and for his victim to see him coming, but there was no telling what his mind was going to be like when he woke up.

* * *

Waiting for the process of Sephiroth's revival to complete was torture. Cloud had mistakenly believed it would take a few hours at most, but two full days passed before he got word that Sephiroth was conscious. All that was left was for them to explain to the General that he was a slave again and Cloud had taken Hojo's place as his keeper.

"Cloud, you're going to wear a groove in the floor," Tifa gently admonished as he paced his hospital room restlessly. She stared at him, noticing the angry expression on his fair face. "Who exactly are you angry with?" She blurted, trying to understand.

He stopped and looked up from the floor at her. "I didn't realize it was that obvious," he murmured, running his fingers through his pale golden hair. He made himself sit down in the chair next to hers. He didn't look at her as he said; "I'm not angry at anybody in particular. I'm angry at this whole situation and even though I volunteered for this to save Sephiroth's life, it makes me sick to my stomach to think of being his 'master'. I know you don't pity him like I do, so I don't expect you to understand."

She reached out and combed her fingers through his hair soothingly. "I do understand…at least, as much as I'm able to. You're a nice guy. You aren't interested in having that sort of power over someone but you're doing it because you think it's better than the alternative. I don't agree but that isn't the issue. I also think you're feeling a lot of guilt and that concerns me."

Cloud looked at her sidelong and cracked a half-smile. "You always did know me too well, Tifa."

She smiled and ruffled his hair. "I just want you to know I'm here for you, even if I disagree with you. If it's all right by you, I'm going to take off when they come to get you. I'm not ready to be near him, Cloud. I still have things to come to terms with and I can't even try to be fair with him until I do."

He squeezed her hand. "Thanks, Tifa. I understand how you feel and I wasn't going to ask you to stick around afterwards. It's enough that you're not holding all this against me."

"Where are you going to keep him?" Tifa asked with a frown, realizing that they hadn't established that yet.

"I'm going to bring him to my house until I can arrange a place somewhere else. I don't want to keep him in Kalm, knowing how you feel about him. Maybe somewhere remote would be best, away from the city and crowds."

Tifa almost said that isolating a man who was antisocial to begin with might not be the best idea, but she thought better of it. Until Cloud could be sure Sephiroth wasn't a danger to society, it might be best for him to live away from civilization. She shrugged. "I trust you, Cloud. I'm sure you'll figure it out and I'm strong enough not to freak out if I spot him in passing. I can live with him being in Kalm for a little while."

* * *

Tifa left before they gave Cloud the go-ahead. It was getting late and she had things she needed to do at home, so Cloud gently ushered her out and promised to call her in the morning. After she was gone he sat back down and turned on the television, clicking through the channels in a useless attempt to keep his mind off of Sephiroth.

He'd started to doze a little in his chair when his door opened to admit Reeve.

"Cloud, it's time."

Cloud stood up so abruptly that he got a head rush. He stumbled slightly and licked suddenly dry lips. Reeve stood waiting at the door with a somber expression on his face.

"Are you ready for this?" Reeve questioned.

"I've got to be," Cloud shrugged. He straightened the dark blue sweater he was wearing and brushed imaginary lint off of his jeans before running his fingers through his hair. It was all subconscious on his part and he didn't even realize he was doing it until he heard Reeve chuckle.

Cloud gave him a puzzled look and Reeve said; "You remind me of a teenager, primping one last time before a first date."

The blonde's pale cheeks flooded with color and his golden lashes lowered to conceal the fire of his blue eyes. "I don't care what he thinks of my looks," he mumbled almost petulantly.

"Sure you do," Reeve corrected with good-natured humor. "He's your old nemesis, after all." His brown eyes were sparkling, hinting that he knew damned well there was more to Cloud's instinctive primping than wanting to show off to an old rival.

"How is he doing?" Cloud asked, procrastinating out of sheer nervousness.

"He seems lucid and calm enough, but we've got him restrained as a precaution for now. It's up to you to decide when he can be released."

Cloud's lips thinned. "That doesn't seem necessary to me. He's been in a coma and his muscles are probably like water."

"He's been in a _stasis_ ," Reeve corrected. "It isn't the same thing. True he's temporarily weakened and stiff because he hasn't been using his muscles, but there's no deterioration. Remember Cloud, that machine preserved Sephiroth for all these years. Somehow Hojo constructed it to be powered on Time and Regeneration materia. It kept him frozen in time while simultaneously restoring damaged tissue. That factor combined with Sephiroth's enhanced attributes will have him back to full strength within weeks—days, even."

Cloud grimaced, feeling stupid. He already knew all of this but he was so wound up with conflicting feelings that he'd forgotten the details. "Okay then, I guess I should brace myself and get in there fast. Restraints aren't going to hold him even in a weakened state, you know."

Reeve swallowed. "I…didn't consider that. Hurry up, Cloud."

* * *

Cloud paused outside the door to Sephiroth's room and took a deep breath. Steeling himself, he looked through the glass window to see what was going on inside. Sephiroth was awake and his bed was raised so that he could sit up. Cloud could see the padded leather restraints around his wrists, attached to the metal sidebars of the bed. He assumed his legs and ankles were likewise bound, but a sheet covered him from the waist down and hid them from view. His silver hair draped his naked chest in a shiny curtain and his emerald cat eyes were on the doctor in the room with him. His stunning features seemed calm but contemptuous as he listened to what the doctor was telling him.

Cloud moved to turn the handle on the door and Sephiroth's eyes flicked to him, staring at him intensely through the glass. Cloud stopped, caught in those mesmerizing, slit-pupiled orbs. They were challenging him, daring him to walk through the door. He was horrified to discover that they still had the same affect on him as they did in the past. He'd always assumed that the general's gaze didn't affect him that way anymore after the Nibelheim incident because his feelings for the man had changed, but now he realized it was because he'd never actually been looking into the eyes of the real Sephiroth during those other encounters.

Clenching his jaw, Cloud forced himself into action and opened the door. The doctor turned at the sound and greeted him politely, but Cloud hardly heard him. His Mako blue eyes stayed locked on Sephiroth's green ones, holding steady under the test of wills. He was doing well until the general spoke.

"Somehow, I thought you'd be taller by now…Cloud." Sephiroth's voice was deep and sensual, lazy and somehow intense at once. The subtle dark undertone lent an inhuman quality to it that Cloud realized for the first time hadn't been present in any of the other Sephiroth incarnations he'd fought. The way his lips formed the blonde's name and the deliberately caressing tone was enough to make the doctor pause and wonder what sort of relationship the two of them really had in the past.

Cloud's gaze wavered under the assault of Sephiroth's voice. His heart thundered and his body tingled with a thrill of both lust and danger. The silver swordsman's lips curved into a subtle, smug smile and Cloud knew exactly why the other man used such a caressing tone. He intended to make him uncomfortable and nervous. Cloud doubted that Sephiroth knew the true affect it had on him.

"I'll just give the two of you some privacy," the doctor said tactfully. He left the room quickly, wanting to put as much distance between himself and the confrontation he feared was about to happen.

"Sephiroth," Cloud greeted with a nod. He was proud that his voice was so steady and even. "Do you understand your situation?"

"Ah, yes. You're trying to take Hojo's place and keep me on a leash," Now Sephiroth's voice oozed with venom. "I must say I'm impressed that someone who started out as a grunt under my command has the balls to try."

"That isn't what I'm trying to do," Cloud countered. "You've been found criminally insane and it was either this or death. I'm willing to try and leave the past behind to make this work, but you've got to meet me halfway."

"You should have killed me," Sephiroth answered. Cloud saw the anger broiling beneath the green eyes and he couldn't blame him.

"Well, I didn't. Now you've got a choice to either work with me or piss your chances away. There are things you don't know about, Sephiroth. At least let me show them to you before you choose suicide."

The silver-haired man frowned and tilted his head slightly to one side, cat-like in his curiosity. "I'm to believe that a cadet somehow uncovered information that I was unable to find myself? Cloud, you are amusing."

"What have you got to lose?" Cloud challenged.

Sephiroth gave him a slow smile and Cloud wondered if the man was even aware of how sensual it was. "It could be interesting to hear what you've fabricated, if nothing else," Sephiroth admitted. "I accept your challenge, for now."

* * *

-To be continued


	4. The mighty have fallen Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 4

"Have you eaten?" Cloud asked, stalling as he tried to make up his mind whether or not to release the other man from his restraints.

Sephiroth shook his head.

"Are you hungry? I know that machine sustained you for all this time, but I don't know when the last time you ate was before…before…" Cloud couldn't finish.

Sephiroth smirked. _~Before I destroyed the town in my undisciplined rage? Before you stabbed me while my back was turned and followed up with a delightful tour of the Lifestream? ~_ Out loud, he said: "Let's just refer to that as the unfortunate incident, for the sake of advancing your little plan. No Cloud, I'm not hungry."

A peculiar sound came from his gut as soon as he finished speaking and Sephiroth pressed his lips together. Cloud raised his eyebrows and looked meaningfully at the other man's stomach and Sephiroth looked away. Was it his imagination, or did Cloud detect a very subtle rise of pigment in the general's pale cheeks?

"Not hungry, eh? Your stomach doesn't agree." Cloud crossed his arms over his chest and grinned.

"I won't be fed like a helpless invalid," Sephiroth stated softly.

Cloud wondered about that, looking at the lean, toned muscles of the other man's arms and torso. Maybe it really was too soon for Sephiroth's strength to have returned enough for him to break free. He saw a barely visible diagonal scar on the tight abdomen and he knew it was from when he'd run Sephiroth through from behind. The Jenova cells had healed the wound so well that the scar was only a paper-thin stripe, easily missed by average eyes. Cloud dragged his gaze away from the faint scar, not wanting to think about that day. His eyes came to rest on Sephiroth's chest.

He'd always thought Sephiroth had the perfect chest. He kept staring at it, fascinated with the smooth, hairless skin and defined pectorals. The flat nipples were dusky rose in coloring and Cloud imagined what they would be like when erect…then he realized how quickly his thoughts were spiraling out of control and gave himself a mental slap.

"I guess I'll have to let you out of those restraints," Cloud shrugged, hoping that the other man would assume his lapse was due to considering whether or not to let him out of his bonds. "You should probably start off with soup and bread, first."

Sephiroth didn't argue. He stared and waited. He was confident that he could break his restraints on his own but he chose not to. He wanted to test Cloud. If the wary, stern expression on the blonde's face as he moved closer was any indication, he probably suspected as much. That suited Sephiroth just fine—he enjoyed a good challenge and there was none to be had with an adversary that underestimated him.

Cloud stopped at the edge of the bed, looking down at Sephiroth with what he hoped was a casual expression. The silver-haired man stared back at him, emerald eyes challenging. Cloud began to revise his opinion that Sephiroth was like a cat. Now he reminded him of a viper. Maybe he was a little of both—a cat waiting to pounce or a serpent waiting to strike—either one was dangerous. It wasn't fear that made him move slowly and carefully, but battle instinct and the awareness that he might have to dodge at any moment. He began to reach out to the buckle that secured Sephiroth's left wrist to the bed.

Sephiroth smiled, causing Cloud to hesitate. The smile was knowing and sensual, daring him. Daring him to do what, exactly? There seemed to be more to the challenge than releasing the restraints.

"Well?" the general purred.

It occurred to Cloud in that moment that their faces weren't far apart. He could feel the warmth of Sephiroth's breath against his skin and he wondered how it could smell like cinnamon when he hadn't had anything to eat or drink yet. Cloud's eyes flicked to his captive's mouth and the sensual curve of his lips. He quickly tore his gaze back to Sephiroth's eyes, remembering the importance of keeping contact.

The buckle snapped open and Cloud kept his eyes locked with Sephiroth's as he tugged the strap loose. The taller man slowly pulled his wrist free of the loop and rested it on his thigh. He didn't move, he just stared directly into Cloud's eyes and waited.

 _~This is stupid, ~_ Cloud thought even as he began to lean over his companion's body to unbuckle the other wrist, _~He can undo the other ones now that he's got a free hand, so why am I doing this?~_ His pulse quickened as his shoulder brushed against Sephiroth's and the distance between their faces shrank. Still the other man held perfectly still, holding Cloud's eyes. The other wrist was freed and Cloud began to straighten up. Sephiroth's eyes released him long enough to glance down, silently pointing out that his lower half was still bound.

Knowing it wasn't necessary but helplessly intrigued by the strange sensuality of the act of freeing him, Cloud moved on to the legs. He swallowed, knowing that Sephiroth was naked beneath the covers. He stubbornly latched eyes with him again and lifted the sheet. Unfortunately he couldn't see what he was doing and he was forced to look away to locate the leg restraints.

He hadn't meant to lift the covers quite that much and Cloud caught a glimpse of Sephiroth's genitals. His face heated up and he quickly looked away, biting his tongue painfully to stop himself from blurting an amazed compliment. The bastard wasn't even hard and…and…Cloud felt his groin swelling as the mental image of Sephiroth's long, thick cock and heavy balls stuck in his mind like glue. He refused to let it shake him though…at least visibly. Defiantly meeting Sephiroth's eyes again, he resumed the task of unbuckling the restraints holding his thighs and ankles. He couldn't help but brush his fingers against Sephiroth's skin as he worked and he found himself appreciating how silky it felt.

When the last restraint was removed, Cloud faced away from Sephiroth to hide the bulge in his jeans. "I'll go and ask someone to bring you some soup," he said, hoping that his arousal and confusion wasn't evident in his voice. How releasing someone from hospital restraints could feel like undressing them was a mystery to Cloud, but somehow it ended up feeling like that to him.

"Why thank you, Cloud." Sephiroth's voice was again a dark caress, making the young man's body tingle.

Cloud almost left his captive's room without considering the consequences of freeing a criminally insane First and leaving him unattended. His common sense nagged at him just as he reached the door and he twisted to look over his shoulder at Sephiroth.

The silver-haired warrior hadn't moved and appeared to be completely relaxed. His bright eyes regarded Cloud knowingly, as if he had read every thought in his mind. "You look tense, Cloud. What could be troubling you, I wonder?"

Cloud's flush deepened as anger collided with his arousal. "You're a really subtle bastard, aren't you?" he said with a glare.

Sephiroth gave him another one of those maddeningly smug, sensual smiles. "Learning is fun, isn't it Cloud? Now, if you'd like to see a more direct example of my nature, you could always give me a sword."

Sephiroth's jaw tightened as though he were bracing for a blow and Cloud realized he was expecting the splitting pain that normally would be his reward for defying Hojo. That made him even angrier.

"Go to sleep," Cloud snarled. It was time to test the snooze button.

Sephiroth looked puzzled. "Is that the best—" his sentence was broken with a yawn—"Insult…you can…" He realized what was happening and his pupils dilated. "H-how dare you!" His beautiful face hardened with anger and he made as if to try and get out of bed, but the mental command took hold of him before he could do it. The green fire of his eyes was snuffed out abruptly as the lids dropped. He fell back against the pillows, his lips parting and his expression relaxing in sleep.

Cloud hadn't realized he was holding his breath until Sephiroth went still. He wasn't sure he was doing it right at first because he'd naively expected it to be immediate. "I suppose it's better this way," he considered aloud, "I wouldn't want you to break your nose falling flat on your face." Well, most of the time he wouldn't want it. When it occurred to him that Sephiroth's little untying challenge was designed to make him uncomfortable enough to get careless he'd been royally pissed off. Truthfully though, Cloud blamed himself as much as he blamed Sephiroth.

When it came to battle and killing, Sephiroth's methods were usually direct. When it came to other things such as getting what he wanted, the man was a genius at manipulation. Cloud already knew this but he'd fallen into the trap anyway. Sighing, he crossed the room and lifted Sephiroth's dangling left arm to place it over his chest. He stared at the general's face for a minute and wondered if he was really strong enough to take on this responsibility. He needed to control his attraction to him, or at least find a way to keep it from fucking up his common sense. Nearly setting Sephiroth loose on the first day of his revival was a lousy start.

* * *

Cloud returned with a bowl of creamy chicken soup and a glass of iced tea from the cafeteria. He used his foot to roll the dining tray into position next to Sephiroth's bed and he placed the food and drink on it.

"Sephiroth," he called, feeling a little bad for waking him up when he looked so peaceful. "I brought you some food." He reached out and placed his hand on the other man's shoulder to shake him gently. Sephiroth's head fell limply to the side and Cloud had a moment of panic. He leaned in to listen and he sighed with relief when he heard the general's deep, even breathing.

Cloud shook him again and called his name, but there was still no response. He backed away with a fierce frown and reached into the pocket of his jeans for his cell phone. Flicking it open, he searched through the saved numbers until he found Reeve's. It rang a couple of times before it was answered.

"Cloud?" Reeve's voice said on the other line, sounding puzzled. "I haven't left the building, you know. You can still find me in my office."

"Yeah, but I didn't want to leave Sephiroth alone again," Cloud explained in a rush. "How do I wake him up?"

There was a heavy pause on the other end of the phone. "Pardon?"

"We had an argument earlier and I put him to sleep," Cloud elaborated impatiently, "I've just come back with some food for him and he won't wake up."

Reeve chuckled.

"It's not funny!" Cloud snapped.

"Ah, you crazy kids in love," Reeve said, prompting Cloud to blush furiously.

"We aren't—" He began defensively, but he knew that somehow Reeve had managed to figure out the nature of his feelings even if the others hadn't. "Just tell me how to wake him up again," Cloud sighed in defeat.

"Calm down, Cloud. It just struck me as funny," Reeve said in a comforting, amused voice. "When you turn a television off, does it come back on by itself?"

Cloud's eyebrows furrowed. "You mean he can't wake up unless I let him?"

"That's the gist of it, yes. You have to will him to wake up just like you willed him to fall asleep." Reeve's voice sobered. "Hojo set it up that way so that he could punish Sephiroth for insubordination for as long as he wanted, without having to concentrate to do it."

Cloud felt a fresh wave of rage and he had to fight to keep from crushing his cell phone with his bare hand. "Why didn't you tell me about that before?" A memory of a conversation he and Zack had about the general resurfaced and suddenly it made more sense. Before the events that led to Sephiroth going insane, he and Zack were pretty close. Zack once told Cloud that sometimes the general didn't personally participate in missions he sent other soldiers out on because of debilitating migraines. He said that sometimes they were so bad they made his nose bleed heavily.

Those migraines took on a whole new meaning for Cloud. They weren't caused by a condition Sephiroth was born with; they were the result of disobedience to Hojo. Cloud felt the sting of tears and he wished Hojo were still alive, just so he could kill him again. The strength of his rage on Sephiroth's behalf shocked him.

Reeve sighed, sounding tired. "I'm sorry, Cloud. This entire affair has been so rushed and I had a million other responsibilities on top of it. I swear, I thought I told you about the trigger working both ways. He'll be fine."

Cloud swallowed the lump in his throat and drew a shuddering breath. "It's okay," he assured Reeve in as steady a voice as he could muster. "I know you're a busy man. I guess it's as much my own fault for not asking enough questions before going through with this. Now that I think of it, I need to know if putting him to sleep is the only way to keep him in line."

"No," Reeve answered, "It's just the most effective and fastest way to stop him. I see I neglected to tell you about the compulsive aspects of the trigger."

Cloud groaned. More thought could have been put into this on all sides. The science department neglected to tell him everything about the chip and he neglected to ask. "Go on," he sighed.

"You can give him orders. He can resist but it won't be easy for him. Something direct and simple like 'Hey, don't kill anyone' would be hard for him to disobey. If you give him a long string of orders it gets diluted and easier to resist and you can't force him to do stupid things like wear a bra on his head and whatnot. It's meant to compel military obedience, not frat pranks. I was hoping one of the doctors would have the sense to explain that part to you but I guess they thought I did. Sorry, Cloud."

Cloud closed his eyes and shook his head. It was hard to imagine being in a position of that much authority over Sephiroth. Maybe it was karmic irony. "All right, I think I get it. Hey Reeve, do me a favor and have someone print me up an instruction booklet, will you? Owning a human being is pretty fucking complicated."

"Uh…sure Cloud. Why don't you get some rest before you…uh…take him home."

"Yeah, rest," Cloud muttered. "Goodbye." He hit the "end" button without waiting for Reeve's response. He felt a little bad for being so cross with him but dammit, the man made him take a ticking time bomb for sake keeping and didn't see fit to tell him all of the details on how to keep it disarmed!

Cloud replaced the phone in his pocket and turned to face Sephiroth. "You can wake up now," he said as he willed it. He probably didn't have to command it out loud but he was getting tired and cranky.

Sephiroth mumbled softly and stirred. His eyelashes fluttered as he blinked and as soon as he saw Cloud, he sat up and scowled at him. "Does it give you a thrill to dictate even when I sleep, Strife?"

This time, there was no caressing use of his given name. The use of his surname and the lethal tone of his voice told Cloud he was well and truly pissed off, but the blonde couldn't bring himself to care. "You brought it on yourself."

Sephiroth's eyes narrowed and his pupils thinned to slits. Cloud realized that he'd just inadvertently said something Hojo probably said to him all the time when he punished him. Before he could try to rectify the mistake, the silver-haired swordsman launched himself out of bed with lightning speed. Cloud suddenly found himself shoved hard against the wall with a very naked and very angry Sephiroth gripping his neck and snarling in his face. He'd known the general wasn't too weak to break his restraints but he hadn't expected him to be able to move this quickly, and he certainly hadn't expected him to be this strong.

Sephiroth's eyes were full of mad rage, but he only pinned Cloud against the wall and didn't squeeze his neck hard enough to cut off his air. Cloud knew without a doubt that it was the chip preventing him from doing so. He tried to break the taller man's hold but Sephiroth's strength was phenomenal. The general pinned one of Cloud's wrists against the wall with his free hand, leaving the blonde's other hand free to ineffectively try to pry Sephiroth's right hand off of his throat.

"The original trigger wasn't satisfying enough for you, was it?" Sephiroth accused in a lethal tone, "You aren't trying to take Hojo's place? What a pathetic liar you are, Cloud."

Cloud twisted against Sephiroth's body, trying to break his painful hold on him. "Dammit Sephiroth, I had them remove the pain trigger and replace it with a sleep trigger! The only way you'll ever get a bloody nose from me is if I punch you!"

The silver warrior's expression changed abruptly and his eyes went blank. His grip loosened only enough to be less painful but not enough to allow Cloud to break free. "How did you know about the nose bleeds?"

"Zack told me," Cloud said with a snarl. "You remember Zack, right? Or did you cut him from your mind when you cut him open?" He'd told himself that he wasn't going to do this, that throwing old wrongs in Sephiroth's face wasn't going to help or change anything. He was angry though, angry and confused.

Sephiroth slowly released him and lowered his eyes. "I remember Zackary," he murmured. His eyes met Cloud's again and he asked; "Did he survive?"

Cloud swallowed as old and painful memories filled him. "He survived your attack. Hojo found both of us wounded and took us to his lab. I'm sure you can imagine what he did to us in those fun-filled years, trying to recreate you."

Sephiroth stared at him and Cloud was a little surprised to see some regret in the tall man's eyes. "You obviously escaped," Sephiroth reasoned. The unasked question hung in the air and Cloud obliged.

"Only because of Zack. He broke out one day and took me with him. By that time I was practically a vegetable—couldn't even hold my own head up, much less fight. He stole a truck and got us as far as Midgar territory before Hojo's goons caught up with us. They…" Cloud swallowed again, feeling his eyes burn, "they shot him down. They left me for dead, I guess figuring I'd be worm food in a day, as helpless as I was. I had enough sense to crawl to Zack and be with him while he died. Now I've got some of his memories."

Sephiroth hadn't blinked. "Zackary died defending you," he said. It wasn't a question.

Cloud nodded and he couldn't stop his eyes from blurring with tears.

"Isn't that just like him," Sephiroth whispered. "Always looking out for someone else."

With a sigh, Sephiroth stepped away. He didn't seem to notice or care that he was still standing there naked. Even through his grief, Cloud couldn't help but notice and he averted his eyes…not because he didn't want to look at Sephiroth's beautiful body but because it felt wrong to do it when the man was coming to terms with human grief. And Sephiroth was grieving; Cloud could see it in the frown on his lips and the somberness in his eyes.

Without saying anything, Cloud grabbed one of the hospital gowns that hung from the line of hooks on the wall and he held it open. Sephiroth saw the gesture and looked down at himself, finally noticing that he was nude. He allowed the blonde to help him slip it on, wincing in the process as if he were stiff. Cloud reasoned that he probably was, now that the rush of adrenaline had worn off. His spontaneous aggression had been spurred by pure emotion…a thing that most people accused Sephiroth of being incapable of. Now he was frowning unhappily with the news that a man who had once been his friend was dead, and it was his fault even if his blow wasn't what killed him.

Sephiroth went to the bed and sat on the edge of it, staring blankly at the floor.

"You should try to eat some soup," Cloud said when the silence stretched on. "Before it gets cold."

Sephiroth looked at the soup in question, then back at Cloud. "I've lost my appetite."

Cloud didn't push the issue. "I guess you want to be alone."

Sephiroth nodded.

"I'll leave the soup here in case you change your mind," Cloud said. He hated to do it when Sephiroth was already upset, but he couldn't abandon his responsibility. "Don't leave the room. In the morning I'll take you to Kalm with me."

Sephiroth's eyes were resentful as they met his, but he didn't argue. He just resumed staring at the floor.

Cloud desperately wanted a drink.

* * *

-To be continued


	5. The mighty have fallen Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 5

The next morning, Cloud found himself facing a dilemma. Actually, he had two dilemmas. For one, Sephiroth had no clothing. For another, Cloud's transportation was a motorcycle, which wasn't very convenient for carrying a weakened passenger.

"Maybe you could wear some of my clothes until we get to Kalm and can shop," Cloud suggested, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

Sephiroth was sitting up in bed, finishing his orange juice. The taller man looked Cloud up and down, raising one silver eyebrow ironically. "I couldn't fit one leg into your pants, Cloud. I could perhaps squeeze into a shirt, if it's loose enough. Doubtful since everything I see you in is snug."

The blonde looked down at himself and smirked. "I guess not," he sighed. "Well, I could look around at the shops here in Junon for something. It might not fit perfectly since I don't know your measurements but I can make a pretty good guess."

Sephiroth shrugged. "You could do that…or we could check my old locker in the military base here. Chances are it hasn't been reassigned since my…vacation. I'd rather not be indebted to you for clothing."

"You may just have to swallow your pride and deal with it," Cloud said with annoyance. "If buying you clothes was a problem for me I'd say so."

"You won't have to buy my clothing, if my locker is still intact," Sephiroth insisted. "I had a spare uniform, gil and a secondary masamune stored in it."

Cloud's blue eyes widened at the thought of giving Sephiroth a weapon, but he supposed he could keep him from using it against anyone. The ride back to Kalm wasn't completely safe, given that there were still mutated beasts wandering the wilds. "How many of those damned swords do you have stashed away?"

Sephiroth smirked. "A good fighter always has backups. How many weapons do you boast in your arsenal, Cloud?"

The blonde snapped his mouth shut, forced to concede the point. "Fine. Let's just get one thing clear right now: If I let you go armed, you aren't to raise your weapon against any human being without my permission."

Sephiroth's eyes narrowed but there was nothing he could do against the command. He nodded once, curtly. "I believe you said you had some information for me?"

Remembering the documents Vincent brought for him, Cloud nodded. "It's in my room. If you want to read it all now we'll have to wait until tomorrow to get out of here. It's going to take you a while to go through them."

Still doubting that Cloud really had anything of real significance to show him and not eager to stay in the lab for another night, Sephiroth shook his head. "I think it can wait. My immediate interest is in getting my belongings and leaving this place."

Cloud couldn't blame him. Sephiroth probably had seen more than enough labs and hospital rooms in his life. "Then we should get going. I'd like to get home before nightfall."

Sephiroth pushed his tray aside and started to stand up. He staggered and Cloud was at his side in an instant, bracing him with his smaller body.

"I don't need your help," Sephiroth stated with annoyance, even as his arm instinctively went around the blonde's waist.

"Fine, I'll just send for a wheelchair."

Cloud's hunch that Sephiroth would balk at the thought of being wheeled around was right on the nose. "I suppose I can accept a little support," the taller man sighed.

Cloud hid his smile.

* * *

Cloud checked himself and Sephiroth out of the hospital, informing the nurse that they'd be back to get the rest of his things before leaving the city. It must have been terribly embarrassing to be out in public wearing an ill-fitting hospital gown and scrub pants, but Sephiroth seemed to take it stoically, ignoring any stares they got. Cloud hailed a trolley to spare walking time to the military compound. Sephiroth was accepting of his support without complaint but he knew it rankled him, so the less the taller man had to lean on him, the better.

They arrived at the military base and Cloud had a moment of panic when Sephiroth's legs nearly buckled under him. He had plenty of strength to support him but his smaller stature made it awkward. "You okay?" he asked as he helped him rebalance.

"Fine," Sephiroth said shortly, not looking at him.

Cloud didn't say anything else, not wanting to hurt the other man's pride any further. Sephiroth was weaker than he'd thought. The adrenaline rush that had allowed him to move so quickly and demonstrate such strength yesterday must have been phenomenal. Together, they made their way through the front door of the base. The guards asked for identification and Cloud groaned.

"We don't have—" Cloud started to say.

"Try ID number 773154," Sephiroth interrupted.

The guard on the left held up a handheld electronic device and entered the numbers. When he got the results, his mouth fell open and he stared up at Sephiroth with huge eyes. "S-sir!" he said, standing at attention abruptly. He was shaking like a leaf. "We thought…that is, we were told you were dead!"

Cloud frowned and looked at the device still clutched in the man's hand. He was able to make out the word "General" on the small LCD screen and see an image of Sephiroth's face, but the guard's fingers obscured the rest. Great, now they'd have to deal with rumors and speculation getting spread about by the military personnel here.

"Do I look like I'm dead?" Sephiroth asked evenly.

The guard shook his head. "N-n-no sir! Your clearance level's frozen, but I can correct the mistake."

"Do that," Sephiroth ordered.

The guard nodded so rapidly that Cloud thought he'd surely have whiplash in the morning. He tore one of his gloves off with his teeth and started pushing buttons rapidly, with shaking fingers. "Oops," the guard muttered nervously, correcting a mistake. The other guard was staring at Sephiroth with slack-jawed amazement while this went on.

"You'll catch flies if you keep doing that, soldier," Sephiroth remarked, and the other guard snapped his mouth shut and saluted.

Cloud was a little surprised when the first guard informed them that Sephiroth's clearance was accepted for renewal. He knew that the Junon military once had orders to locate and retain the general, but he supposed those orders no longer stood since the threat was gone. He could see the questions burning in the guards' eyes as they started through the sliding doors.

"He's just come out of a coma," Cloud explained, hoping to quell any wild theories before they started. "They've been keeping it quiet because they didn't know if he'd wake up."

Sephiroth gave him an annoyed look and the two guards nodded convulsively and saluted again.

"I had to tell them something," Cloud whispered after the doors closed behind them. "When the shock wears off they're going to be spreading the news."

The taller man grumbled, "Let's get this over with."

* * *

Cloud had his doubts that Sephiroth's locker was still in his name, but when they reached the barracks the other man entered a combination on one of the deluxe sized lockers and it opened. Inside was a familiar outfit of black cloth and leather, as well as an even more familiar sword. It barely fit in the locker and Sephiroth had to maneuver it a bit to get it out. He placed the masamune on one of the benches and pulled his uniform out.

"This will need washing," Sephiroth said with a frown as he lifted the outfit.

"Can't it wait?" Cloud asked.

The taller man's emerald gaze flicked to him and he grimaced. "Would you like to wear something that's been hanging in a locker for years, Strife?"

"I don't know…wasn't it washed before it was put back?"

"Yes, but that was over five years ago."

Cloud scratched his head and flushed with embarrassment at the look Sephiroth was giving him. Clearly the man thought he was a pig. He dreaded what he'd say when he saw the clutter in his house. "I don't know where the nearest Laundromat is, and we're on a schedule," he said lamely.

"This is a soldier's barracks, Cloud," Sephiroth sighed impatiently, "men _live_ here. There are washer and dryer machines located right in this hall. You should know that."

Cloud stammered and fell silent. Yeah, he _should have_ known that. He felt incredibly stupid as Sephiroth shook his head and looked at him as if saying: _~"You really are a natural blonde, aren't you?"~_

"How long will it take?" Cloud asked—and he immediately regretted it.

Sephiroth arched a graceful, pale brow. "Does your little friend Tifa do all of your laundry for you? It should only take a half-hour, forty-five minutes at the most. The pants are the only part I can run through the machine…the leather I can foam clean while we wait."

"I wash my own clothes," Cloud protested, "I just don't wash them one outfit at a time!"

Sephiroth smirked at him and Cloud couldn't tell if it was because he was amused or if it was because he was pleased to have gotten under his skin. The tall swordsman's smirk turned into a gasp as he turned to walk out of the locker room and he stumbled. Cloud quickly jumped off of the bench and put his arms around him, keeping him from completing his fall. He noticed sweat beading Sephiroth's pale forehead and suspected that activity was taking more effort than the man let on. For a moment their eyes met and Cloud felt tingles shoot through him as he became aware of the feel of Sephiroth's hard body pressing snugly against his.

"Here, let me take that," Cloud mumbled, trying to pull the pants out of Sephiroth's grip. "I can put it in for you while you start on the leather pieces."

"Are you certain you know how?" Sephiroth replied dubiously.

"I told you, I know how to wash clothes," Cloud snapped, "I'm not as dumb as you think!"

"Just air-headed," Sephiroth returned, but he smiled a little as he said it and his tone was slightly teasing rather than dismissive. Cloud's heart skipped a beat. Was their a touch of fondness in that smile, or was it just more of Sephiroth's sardonic disdain for him? "Very well, use the permanent press cycle and a low heat for drying."

"I will," Cloud assured him, understanding that the instructions were Sephiroth's personal preference and not an attempt to further treat him like a laundry idiot. He helped the taller man to the bench and located the can of foam leather cleaner in the locker, which was sitting on top of a black metal box in the bottom. Beside the can were a soft bristled scrub brush and a sponge. Cloud noticed that the box had a combination lock on it and he assumed it contained Sephiroth's gil stash.

He took the items and placed them on the bench next to Sephiroth. "I'll be back in a minute. Don't go anywhere."

Sephiroth rolled his eyes as the compulsion took hold. "Must you do that, Cloud? It isn't as though I'm in the condition to go anywhere on my own."

"I'm just covering my bases," Cloud said, smiling a little at the other man's frustration. "I know if you really wanted to, you'd find a way."

He felt Sephiroth's eyes boring into his back as he left the locker room. _~I think I'm getting the hang of this,~_ Cloud thought, _~I just hope he stops resenting me so much sooner or later and realizes his situation could be a lot worse.~_

* * *

Cloud had to stop and ask a passing cadet for directions but he found the laundry room in good time. He selected a detergent that he thought Sephiroth would use and put the pants into the machine. As he was selecting the settings, he overheard a conversation between three soldiers in the room.

"Is it true? The General is here?"

"I heard he's been in a coma for all this time."

"He had some blonde dude with him, I hear. They're in the building somewhere."

"That blond dude over there?"

Cloud turned around to find all three of the men watching him. One of them, a young looking guy with brown hair and green eyes, cleared his throat. "Hey, did you come here with General Sephiroth?"

Cloud sighed inwardly, predicting that the rest of their time here was going to be spent warding off autographs and questions. "Yeah, I'm his…friend. He just got released today and we're just picking up some of his things." Well, it wasn't a complete lie. They might not be bosom buddies but right now, Cloud was the closest thing to a "friend" Sephiroth had.

"Where is he?"

Cloud's sense of foreboding increased. "He's in one of the locker rooms, but I wouldn't bother him if I were you. He's not in a good mood."

All three of them paled and Cloud forced down a grin. For once, he was thankful of Sephiroth's fearful and awe-inspiring reputation. He remembered feeling the same mixture of fear and respect for the man, when he was their age.

"Oh no, we won't bother him," the soldier with the sandy blonde hair said hastily.

"I wouldn't mind having a look at him," the redhead commented, "He's a living legend and I've never seen him in the flesh before!"

"It's your funeral," Cloud said, not really joking. He didn't imagine Sephiroth reacting well to being crowded with ogling soldiers and he feared it may enrage him to the point where the command not to kill might not work.

"Uh, I think we should do what he says and leave the General alone," the brunette said nervously. "I don't think pissing him off would be a good idea."

 _~No, it wouldn't~_ Cloud silently agreed, _~and just to be sure that doesn't happen, I'd better get back to him. There's no telling how many soldiers have been in and out of that locker room since I left him there…I just hope I don't go back to find a pile of corpses!~_

* * *

"Why do you look so worried, Cloud?" Sephiroth's lips curved into one of those sensual, knowing smiles as he looked up at the blonde hurrying back into the locker room.

Cloud ignored the amusement in the taller man's bright eyes. "Word is out and I wanted to get back here before you got too many unwanted visitors. Don't look so smug, you know damned well why that worries me."

"Ah, yes. I've already had the pleasure of a few gawking onlookers. They left in a hurry when I looked back. I can't imagine why." Sephiroth returned his attention to his long coat, shaking the can of foam before spraying a dollop on the leather. His silvery lashes lowered, concealing his eyes as he carefully rubbed the foam into the leather and Cloud couldn't help but admire how long and thick they were.

"Sephiroth, is that all you did?" Cloud demanded, not willing to trust that he didn't hurt anyone.

The silver-haired warrior looked up, not pausing in his work. "Check the lockers for bodies, if you think otherwise. Although logic would dictate that if I had killed anyone, there would be blood somewhere. Don't you agree?"

Getting the feeling that those emerald eyes were laughing at his paranoia, Cloud blushed. Damn his complexion and low blush factor! Sephiroth took note of the heightened color of his cheeks and grinned.

"You can't blame me for being careful," Cloud said, leaning against a locker and crossing his arms over his chest.

"No, I suppose not." Sephiroth's long fingers worked the sponge skillfully, pressing it down on the leather and rubbing in a firm, circular motion. Cloud's eyes were drawn to it and the unwitting question of what it would feel like to have those hands working their magic on his body popped into his head. His blush deepened and Sephiroth tilted his head curiously.

"I wonder what thoughts are going through your head, to make you blush like that," Sephiroth observed as he turned his attention back to putting more foam on his coat. "Your bashfulness is almost endearing."

Cloud shifted his feet wordlessly, ridiculously affected by the general's observation. Endearing? Did Sephiroth just hint that he thought he was cute? To distract himself from all of these unhealthy questions and concerns, Cloud reached down and picked up one of Sephiroth's leather boots. "I'll get started on these if you don't mind. It'll go faster with both of us doing it."

Sephiroth paused to regard him. The doubtful expression returned to his face. "You know how to clean and polish boots?"

Cloud rolled his eyes. "You really do think I'm a fucking imbecile, don't you?"

Sephiroth smiled again, his emerald gaze roving over Cloud's face. "It was only a question, Cloud." He wouldn't say it out loud but it was entertaining to watch the young man get hot and bothered so easily.

Cloud grumbled and picked up the brush to start. Still grinning softly, Sephiroth applied a bit of foam to the boot for him before focusing his attention back on his coat. _~Temperamental little blonde,~_ Sephiroth thought, allowing himself a bit of amusement at Cloud's expense.

* * *

Thankfully the pants were finished within a little under a half an hour. While Sephiroth finished up with his chest straps, Cloud retrieved his pants from the laundry room and hurried back. Evidently the military personnel had enough common sense not to linger in or around the locker room but there was always a fool somewhere and Cloud didn't want to push his luck.

"I've got your pants—" Cloud said as he shut the door behind him. He turned around to face Sephiroth and his voice caught in his throat. The tall man was already disrobing, with a complete lack of modesty. It shouldn't have come as a shock to Cloud, given the military background and the fact that dressing and showering in front of others was a part of that life, but this was Sephiroth, not some average guy.

Sephiroth discarded his robe and turned to face Cloud as he untied the drawstrings of the scrub pants he wore. He pulled them down and reached out for the pants clutched in the blonde's hands, absently kicking the hospital scrubs aside. The silver general paused with a frown when Cloud didn't hand his pants to him. He looked at the young man and found him staring with wide blue eyes and a frozen expression. He almost resembled one of those popular ball-joint dolls, with his porcelain skin, gently curving lips and impossibly bright eyes.

Sephiroth stared back at him and almost asked if he'd hit his head, but then the eyes scanned his body and it occurred to the general that the concussed expression on the young man's face was caused by his nudity. He should have realized with Cloud's bashful nature that he was probably the type that waited for the other soldiers to leave before dressing or showering. The blonde's expression softened and the sapphire eyes rested on his genitals, revealing to Sephiroth that it wasn't just shyness that made Cloud react this way.

Now Sephiroth was uncomfortable. He'd had people look at him that way before, of course, but he never expected to see that expression on Cloud's face. Logically he thought that the last thing the blonde should ever feel for him was attraction, but the visibly growing bulge in Cloud's jeans said otherwise. Sephiroth didn't know whether he was pleased or disconcerted with this new revelation and he snatched his pants out of the blonde's slack grip quickly and turned his back on him, cursing the heat he felt warming his cheeks.

Cloud tried to snap out of it, tried to tear his eyes off of the firm, round ass that was partially covered by the silky curtain of Sephiroth's hair. "Uh, can you ride a motorcycle?" He heard himself say. He felt like he was in a dream, because he'd surely fantasized over this very thing more than once before.

"Yes," Sephiroth answered shortly. _~Stop looking at me that way, Cloud.~_ He could feel the blonde's eyes on him as he pulled his pants up and fastened them. Cloud was the only person on Gaia that could be considered somewhat of a comrade to Sephiroth now. The last comrade that looked at him that way…no…he didn't want to think of it. He reached for his harness and was surprised and annoyed to find his hands shaking as he struggled to fasten it. He didn't know if it was due to nerves or weakness but it made his fingers clumsy.

Cloud noticed that he was having difficulty. Knowing that his help wasn't wanted, he waited to see if Sephiroth could finish securing the harness over his naked chest on his own. When the taller man growled in annoyance, Cloud hesitantly stepped forward to help.

"Here, that thing looks tricky," Cloud murmured as he tugged the harness in place in the back and moved around to Sephiroth's front. He didn't look up at him as he tightened the straps and buckled one of the fastenings. His pulse quickened as his fingers made contact with Sephiroth's too-perfect chest and he swallowed. The back of his knuckle brushed the left nipple and it hardened as a result. Cloud somehow fought the wicked urge to fondle the nub with his fingertips, moving on to the other buckle. He was surprised that the other man was allowing him to do this, but upon feeling the slight tremor in the body he was helping to dress, Cloud realized that Sephiroth's strength was hanging by a thread. "There," he said as he finished, finally looking up at him.

Sephiroth. Was. Blushing.

At first, Cloud thought that his eyes were tricking him. He'd seen the general's high cheekbones pinken the slightest bit yesterday when his stomach had growled, but now they were highlighted with a charming rose tint. A horrifying realization stole over Cloud at that moment. _~I'm such a fucking idiot! Why did I have to stare at him that way…now he knows!~_ And it was clearly making him uncomfortable. If his attraction for the silver-haired man was inappropriate, the disappointment he felt at the thought that it wasn't returned was even more so. Cloud berated himself for even entertaining thoughts of becoming anything more than Sephiroth's custodian. How could the man return his feelings, when he was his prisoner?

"Let's get your coat on," Cloud said as steadily as he could, trying not to reveal the hurt he felt. Sephiroth was blessedly silent, either possessing too much class to say anything about Cloud's reaction or too flustered by it. He let him help to slip the trench coat on and didn't protest when Cloud fastened the front. The only thing missing from the outfit was Sephiroth's shoulder guards. Personally Cloud thought the outfit looked better without the oversized things, anyway. He stepped back to inspect the outfit, making sure nothing was loose or crooked.

"It looks like you're ready to go. Now all we have to do is get your boots on and strap your masamune to your back." Cloud hoped that his voice was casual. His cheeks were still hot with embarrassment, but his boner was thankfully softening in his pants.

Sephiroth sank carefully onto the bench and Cloud noted that he was breathing heavily. This whole morning had taken a toll on the man's energy and he wanted to get him home to Kalm as soon as possible, so that he could rest and recover in peace. He waited while Sephiroth tugged his boots on, noticing the way his hands shook as he did it. Cloud hid his frown, not wanting to insult the general by showing his concern. He began to wonder if it was a good idea to take him out of medical care so soon. He was starting to think he was actually a little worse today than he was yesterday and there was so much he didn't know about the stasis he'd been in.

"Something troubling you, Cloud?"

The young man looked up, seeing his companion regarding him suspiciously. His concerns must have been showing on his face despite his efforts to hide them. Slipping his hands in his pockets, Cloud shrugged. "I don't know…I'm starting to think I shouldn't take you out of the hospital this soon. You seem a little—"

"I'm not staying in that place another night," Sephiroth said firmly. "I just need a few days to recover my strength and get my body used to activity again."

Cloud knew there was no winning this argument. The taller man's lips were drawn into a hard line and he could see the sincere dread of all things lab related behind the slit-pupiled gaze. "Okay, but if you start to get worse I'm going to have to make a house call for a doctor and you'll have to submit to it. I'm not going to have you keeling over on me when you're under my protection, clear?"

Sephiroth's expression changed, a hint of wonder softening his features. For the first time he began to think that Cloud really wasn't doing this to get revenge against him. "I can agree to those terms," He replied.

* * *

-To be continued


	6. The mighty have fallen Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 6

Cloud was amazed by how much gil Sephiroth had stashed in the little box. Looking at the neat stacks of bills, he deduced there had to be around fifty thousand, and Sephiroth informed him that he had more tucked away in the old Shinra headquarters in Midgar. Unfortunately the latter part of the money was buried under tons of rubble now, if it wasn't reduced to ash. Sephiroth didn't seem to care.

"How did you save up that much money?" Cloud asked him as they left the base.

"By not spending it on luxuries," Sephiroth answered simply. "I used my salary to buy what I needed and the rest went into the safe boxes for emergency use or savings. What we recovered here should be plenty for me to live off of, for a long time."

Cloud chose not to comment, understanding that the only real reason Sephiroth even cared about retrieving his Junon stash was so that he didn't have to rely on Cloud's money for his needs. Hell, he was better off than Cloud and that wasn't even half of the money he'd put away!

They took another trolley back to the lab and retrieved Cloud's suitcase and the briefcase containing Sephiroth's documents. Cloud called Reeve's cell phone to let him know that they were leaving and the WRO executive wished him luck and told him to call if he needed anything. Sephiroth held up admirably as they made their way through the parking garage to where Fenrir was parked, but Cloud could tell he was struggling not to stumble. His hands weren't free to help the other man so he hoped his legs held up until they reached the cycle.

"This is us," Cloud said as he stopped in front of the huge bike. "I'll just stow these in the carriage compartment and we can be off."

Sephiroth eyed the powerful bike, lifting his eyebrows at the various gadgets and weapon compartments and the huge exhaust pipes in the back. "Impressive," he said honestly.

Cloud smiled with pleasure. "This is Fenrir. He's seen a lot of action with me."

"You do realize it's a bike, not a person or a pet?"

Cloud was used to being teased by his friends for naming his bike. He put his palms over the ends of Fenrir's handles as if to cover them. "Shhh! Don't hurt his feelings!" he lectured with a mock look of horror.

Sephiroth's mouth twitched in amusement and he coughed to hide a laugh. "We can't have that, can we?"

Cloud smiled at him again, enjoying the brief banter. Sephiroth gazed at him with softened eyes for a moment before looking away. The silver-haired man frowned, disliking the affect that Cloud's innocent smile had on him. He had to be careful…prisoners that empathized too strongly with their captors eventually became willing slaves.

Cloud sobered as well, feeling the walls come up between them. He swallowed his disappointment and put the luggage and briefcase away, securing the handle of the compartment firmly before straddling Fenrir's seat. He looked up at Sephiroth, wondering why he hadn't gotten on behind him. "You coming?" he asked.

Sephiroth stared at him expectantly, crossing his arms over his chest. Cloud then realized what was wrong; he expected their positions to be reversed. "Oh, I don't think so," Cloud said. "Nobody drives Fenrir except me. Come on, Sephiroth…sitting behind me isn't going to make you lose macho points. Besides, you're not in any condition to handle him even if I did let you drive."

Sephiroth stood there stubbornly for a minute, debating inwardly. Cloud waited with lifted eyebrows, refusing to back down. Finally, the taller man sighed and carefully climbed on. Cloud could feel him trembling against his back and he frowned. "Hang on tight, okay Sephiroth? Oh, and you might want to put these on…" he opened up one of the smaller compartments by the steering bars and took out two pairs of goggles, reaching behind to hand it to his companion.

Sephiroth took the goggles with a less than enthusiastic expression on his face. Cloud could see his grimace from the corner of his eye and he insisted; "You'll be glad you're wearing those when we get out on the open road. If a bug hits you just right you could get blinded."

He heard Sephiroth sigh and felt him move to secure the goggles. Cloud did the same with his own pair and again reminded; "Hold on tight."

He regretted it when Sephiroth's arms came around his waist and squeezed so hard he couldn't breathe. "Too tight!" Cloud protested breathlessly. He felt the man's body quiver with laughter and rolled his eyes, realizing he'd done it on purpose. The hold loosened a bit and he shamelessly enjoyed the feel of Sephiroth's body against his back. He inserted the key to the ignition and cranked Fenrir up, smiling when he heard Sephiroth release a startled curse, clearly unprepared for the volume of the powerful engine.

"You'll get used to it!" Cloud hollered as he put the bike in gear and drove out of the parking garage. Just as they were getting ready to turn onto the street, Cloud realized something. Sephiroth's long, streaming hair would be nothing but a tangle of knots by the time they reached Kalm, and it could easily catch on something. He stopped the bike and twisted in his seat.

"You might want to tuck your hair into your coat before we go. Otherwise it's going to be whipping out like a banner and I don't even want to think about how long it'll take to comb it out."

Sephiroth nodded and reached up and behind, grabbing his hair and twisting it over and over again, doubling it up and finally stuffing it down the back of his coat. Satisfied that he wouldn't have to be faced with the tragedy of having to cut the beautiful hair off due to incurable knots, Cloud kicked Fenrir into gear again and pulled onto the street when there was an opening in traffic.

* * *

Due to traffic, it took them nearly an hour to get out of Junon and hit the open road. They were making good time, though they would have made better time if Cloud weren't afraid to bring Fenrir up to top speed. He kept picturing hitting a rut or a bump and Sephiroth flying off the back of the bike as a result. As they traveled, he wondered if his companion was cold. There was a chill in the air and with Sephiroth's constitution down the way it was, he was afraid he'd end up getting the flu or something.

"You warm enough back there?" he hollered over his shoulder. "If you get cold you can duck down behind my back…it might shield you from the wind a little."

Sephiroth assured him that he wasn't too cold and he was thankful that Cloud couldn't see his face. Truthfully his nose and ears were turning red, but he would die before he complained about it. The blonde's concern for him was partly annoying and partly endearing. He really wished Cloud would stop being so damned chivalrous.

After an hour, Cloud pulled off at a rest stop. "I don't know about you but I've got to take a leak and stretch a little," he said as he swung his leg over the side of Fenrir. "Are you hungry? They've got a hotdog stand here." He pulled his goggles down to hang around his neck.

Sephiroth did the same with his goggles, and his nose crinkled at the hotdog offer. "I'd rather eat road kill, but thank you. I'll just take a piss and if they've got coffee, I'd like a cup."

Cloud noticed how red the other man's nose and ears were, and he frowned. "I've got a mask stashed away in here if you want to cover your face."

"Just stop it," Sephiroth said crossly. "I'll be fine."

With that, he gingerly mimicked Cloud's earlier action, staggering a little as he got to his feet. He saw the hurt in the blonde's eyes and refused to try and salve it. Cloud needed to get over whatever silly notions were in his head concerning their relationship. It wasn't healthy for either of them to do otherwise.

"The restrooms are this way," Cloud said in a subdued voice. "I think they sell coffee at the stand, we'll just have to wait and see."

Sephiroth told himself that he didn't care about the slump in the young man's shoulders or that he looked like a kicked puppy. He followed Cloud to the building with the restrooms and schooled his features into an impenetrable mask. Instead of going in the urinal he chose a stall for privacy. He attributed Cloud with enough sense not to go soft-eyed and erect in the pants at the sight of him pissing but he didn't want to test it. He unzipped his pants and listened to the sound of Cloud doing the same. As he emptied his bladder, a little voice in his head suggested that it might not be a bad idea to nurture Strife's obvious attraction for him, rather than try to choke it.

 _~You could use his feelings to find a weakness and exploit it,~_ that cold voice of logic whispered, _~You can still receive him even if you can't give unto him~_ Sephiroth shook his head and pressed his lips together angrily, wiping his limp member off with a bit of toilet paper and stuffing it back into his pants. He didn't resent Cloud enough to use him that way, at least, not yet. As for allowing something to bloom for its own sake, he'd already been down that path once. There was no point to it, he'd never feel pleasure like other men and Cloud was too fucking noble to take advantage when it didn't provide the same relief for Sephiroth that it would for him.

Sephiroth flushed the toilet and watched absently as his Mako-tinged DNA swirled around before vanishing. He wondered briefly what life would have been like if Hojo's alterations hadn't made him so different from other men. He heard Cloud wash his hands and leave the bathroom. He left the stall and went to the sink to wash his hands, using his teeth to pull off his gloves first. While he soaped and rinsed his hands off he glanced up and saw his reflection in the mirror.

Damn, no wonder Cloud was worried about him. He looked like a wino with frostbitten ears and dark circles around his eyes. Sephiroth couldn't remember a time when he'd ever looked this trashed before. The blonde kid probably thought he was going to drop dead any minute. Sephiroth shook his head and splashed a little cold water on his face, then patted it dry and wiped his hands. Shaking his head, he found himself chuckling a little as he pulled his gloves back on. Misplaced or not, Cloud's concern for him was valid, considering how shitty he looked. Sephiroth was almost tempted to apologize for his earlier rudeness, but he reminded himself that it was better not to inspire warm feelings if possible.

He found Cloud at the hotdog stand and before he even made it to the window to order something, the blond was holding a steaming cup of coffee out to him. "I figured I'd save you the trouble," Cloud said.

Sephiroth slowly took the coffee, working his mouth as he struggled to find a way to thank him without sounding overly affectionate. "Appreciated," he got out in a clipped tone.

Cloud shrugged, realizing that for someone like Sephiroth, "Thank you" was a foreign concept. "Let's sit down at that bench over there."

Sephiroth complied, more because Cloud had unwittingly compelled him to do so than out of a desire to sit. It was maddening how he could force him to do things without even realizing it, but Sephiroth refused to arm him with the knowledge of just how much the trigger could do. The problem was he was a little afraid that he wouldn't be able to stand back up again on his own when it was time to go. Sephiroth was feeling shakier and weaker with each passing hour and there was an indescribable feeling of anxiety rising within him.

Cloud bit into a hotdog topped with relish and onions, chewing in satisfaction. He saw Sephiroth staring at him and paused. "What?" he said as he swallowed.

"Do you know what's in those things?"

"Yeah, but they taste good anyway." Cloud grinned at him and took another bite. He noticed that Sephiroth hadn't taken any cream or sugar packets and had started drinking his coffee without either of them. He swallowed what he was chewing and asked; "You're just going to drink it black?"

"What business is that of yours?" Sephiroth inquired, though his tone was light.

"Hey, you criticized my hotdog, I'll criticize your drink."

Sephiroth's mouth twitched, betraying a hint of a smile before resuming a neutral expression. "Too each their own."

Cloud chastised himself for trying so hard to break down Sephiroth's walls. It was stupid, dangerous and probably doomed to failure to try and form any sort of lasting relationship with the man…especially considering that he hadn't given him any reason to think his interests swung toward men…let alone Cloud himself. With a sigh, the blonde continued to eat, washing it down with a can of diet soda. He was annoyed when Sephiroth again lectured his food choice.

"Do you know diet soft drinks aren't any healthier than regular?"

Cloud glared at him. "Do you know caffeine isn't good for you?"

Sephiroth smirked. "You're a worthy opponent, Cloud."

Against his will, the blonde grinned again. He didn't understand why conversation with Sephiroth was so hard one minute and so easy the next. It was always stimulating, regardless of which direction it took. He finished his soft drink and Sephiroth finished his coffee. Cloud got up and took their trash to the nearest receptacle, then told Sephiroth it was time to get going again. The silver-haired man didn't stand up immediately and for a minute Cloud thought he was delaying just to be a pain in the ass. Then Sephiroth placed both hands on the picnic table for leverage and slowly stood up. He was shaking with the effort.

Cloud hurried over and put his arms around Sephiroth's waist, ignoring his protests as he helped him to the bike. "You're beat," he said in a comforting tone. "And you're mortal. Quit expecting so much out of yourself or you'll overdo it."

Sephiroth stopped arguing and did something that shocked Cloud to his very toenails; he rested his forehead on the blonde's shoulder. "Okay, now I know you're in bad shape," Cloud whispered, ignoring the people that stared with curiosity. He felt the tall form he was supporting tremble and he gulped, getting the other man to Fenrir as quickly as possible.

"Just hang in there, Sephiroth," Cloud said as he helped him onto the bike before sliding on as well. "I'll pick up the speed and get us to Kalm as fast as I can. All you have to do is hold onto me."

He felt Sephiroth rest his head on his back and nod wordlessly. The urge to reach back and stroke the other man's shiny hair nearly overpowered Cloud. Gritting his teeth, he replaced his goggles on his face and started Fenrir up. If Sephiroth got any worse he was definitely going to call a doctor after getting him to the house. He only hoped that the caffeine in the coffee hadn't set off some sort of reaction.

* * *

By the time they were twenty or so minutes away from Kalm, Sephiroth had fallen asleep against Cloud's back. The blonde was forced to slow down and be very careful on his turns. He felt Sephiroth sliding to the side and he cursed and pulled over. "Sephiroth!" He called urgently, twisting in his seat to support him.

Sephiroth's eyes fluttered open and stared blankly at Cloud. It took a minute for the green orbs to focus and he shook his head weakly to clear it. "I don't know why I'm so tired," he said in a frustrated tone.

"You need rest," Cloud frowned. "We're almost to Kalm, though. I've got to find a way to keep you secured in case it happens again. He bit his lip in thought, mentally reviewing everything he had stashed in Fenrir's compartments. Rope. He had rope that he used for towing and securing needs. "This is going to sound bad but I think I need to tie us together," Cloud said.

Sephiroth snorted. "That isn't necessary. I can hold out until we reach Kalm."

"I'm not willing to take that chance. You don't need road rash and broken bones on top of everything else." Cloud stubbornly ignored Sephiroth's arguments and opened his supply compartment, fishing out the towing rope. "Here, help me get this around your waist. I'm not going to tie your hands or anything, I'm just going to give you some support so that you don't fall off."

Grumbling with annoyance, Sephiroth complied—again because Cloud had ordered him and he couldn't refuse thanks to the trigger. Cloud hopped back on in front of him and together, they wound the rope around their waists until the blond was satisfied that it was secure enough to keep Sephiroth one the bike…or at least, attached to him. Given his greater weight there was a possibility that if Seph started to go, he'd take Cloud off the bike with him. It was a risk Cloud felt he had to take, though.

They got back on the road again and Cloud used every riding skill he had to keep the both of them balanced and the remaining part of the journey smooth. He felt no small relief when they crested a hill and he saw the town looming in the distance. He could smell the smoke of chimneys and the aroma of dinners being cooked. Hardly breaking his speed, Cloud drove into Kalm.

* * *

Tifa could hear the familiar rumble of Cloud's bike in the street outside. His house was just a few doors down from her bar and home. She paused in wiping down the bar and peered out the window when she heard people on the street talking excitedly, saying something about a young man tied to Cloud's back.

Sure enough, she saw Cloud drive by and it appeared that Sephiroth was tied to his back and unconscious. "What in the hell?" Tifa said in bafflement. Though she really wasn't looking forward to being anywhere near Sephiroth, her curiosity at this strange predicament got the better of her.

"Jessica, I'm going to go say hello to Cloud and see if he needs anything. Will you look after things for a little while?" Tifa asked her employee. The barmaid nodded and Tifa hurried out, jogging down the street after Cloud.

Cloud pulled into his driveway, activating the garage door and going straight in before it was half raised. Tifa called his name, hurrying to get in with him before the door lowered again. The motorcycle's engine drowned out her voice but she made it into the garage in time. Cloud cut the engine and began to untie Sephiroth. He yelped in surprise when a feminine hand grabbed his shoulder.

"Tifa," Cloud gasped, "I don't know how you got in here so fast without me seeing you."

"What's going on here?" She asked, eyeing Sephiroth's disheveled, oblivious form.

"He's been getting weaker all day," Cloud answered, "I think he's just overtaxed and needs rest. Can you get the door for me after I get him off the bike?"

"Of course," Tifa said, "but do you think you can carry him?" She eyed the tall general and Cloud's slighter frame dubiously.

"If I could lug Barret around that time he got wasted, I think I can handle Sephiroth. His height is going to make it awkward but the weight isn't a problem."

"I can walk," Sephiroth said sluggishly, startling them both badly enough to make Cloud jump and Tifa squeak.

Cloud frowned but nodded. "We'll try it your way but if you pass out again I'm going to have to carry you."

With Tifa's help, Cloud got the rope unwound and put away and then he got off of the bike to help Sephiroth. The silver warrior seemed to have trouble focusing his eyes and his legs buckled beneath him as soon as his feet hit the pavement. Cloud caught him and draped one of his arms over his shoulder, lifting him to a standing position again. "That's it, one foot in front of the other," he said to Sephiroth, whose head kept drooping drunkenly. He felt the other man shivering and he impulsively stroked his back as he supported him. Tifa held the door open for them and followed them into the den.

Cloud was trying to make it to the bedroom with his charge so that he could get him in bed and covered up, but Sephiroth's stomach started to heave and he made an ominous sound. "Bathroom," the general choked.

Cloud guided his companion's faltering steps to the downstairs bathroom, getting him through the door and to the toilet as fast as he could. Sephiroth fell to his knees and vomited up the coffee he'd drunk earlier. Cloud hovered over him and combed the shorter parts of Sephiroth's hair away from his face with his fingers, holding it back so that it didn't get in the way. Tifa stood in the doorway watching with a mixture of awe and concern as the man that used to be practically a god knelt and heaved his guts out.

Cloud's concern grew to maximum heights as Sephiroth's shivering grew worse and he heaved until a white, foam like substance came out. Cloud looked up at Tifa with alarmed blue eyes. "Tifa—"

"I'll call Dr. Melvin," She said swiftly, understanding his desire. She hurried into the den where the phone was, picked it up and began to dial. She wasn't sure what to say when she got the doctor on the phone, so she just told him that she was at Cloud's house and he had a very sick friend that needed medical attention.

Cloud rubbed Sephiroth's back helplessly as the man continued to heave. He heard Tifa speaking on the phone with the doctor and he hoped he was available for a house call. After a while she came back into the bathroom, holding a damp washcloth.

"Here, put this on the back of his neck," she suggested.

Cloud gently pulled the general's hair out of the back of his jacket and lifted it away from his neck, pressing the washcloth firmly against the sweating skin. After a few moments of tortured dry heaving, Sephiroth finally stilled and rested his forehead against his arms, which he had crossed over the toilet seat. His breathing was shaky and uneven and his lips were pale.

"Can you try to get up Sephiroth?" Cloud asked gently. "We should try to get you out of your coat and into bed. Tifa's called a doctor to come and look at you."

For a minute he feared the man hadn't even heard him, but Sephiroth nodded weakly and draped an arm around Cloud's neck. With effort, the blonde got his charge to his feet and out of the bathroom. Tifa followed helplessly, knowing that she'd only get in the way if she tried to help. It wasn't that she cared anything about Sephiroth; it was that she's seen the sheer worry in Cloud's eyes and she was a compassionate person at heart. If nothing else, she wanted Sephiroth to be okay for Cloud's sake.

Cloud got the taller man onto his bed and after a brief struggle; he pulled his long coat off. Sephiroth collapsed backwards before Cloud could remove his harness, but as long as the coat was out of the way for the doctor to check his heart and lungs, it didn't matter. Cloud took the taller man's boots off and lifted his legs onto the bed, then covered him up to the chin. He sat on the edge of the bed and gently dabbed at Sephiroth's pale, sweat-beaded face with the cool washcloth.

Tifa tilted her head to the side and watched her friend in action. He was taking such tender care of Sephiroth, certainly more than his position as the man's keeper obligated him to. The barmaid narrowed her eyes thoughtfully as she watched the expressions play over Cloud's face. She knew that expression and what it meant. Either Cloud was head-over-heels in love with Sephiroth, or he had a bad case of infatuation. She wanted to slap herself for being so blind! How could she have missed it?

"Cloud," she began, trying to think of how to address the delicate situation. Did she even have a right to tell him how worried she was, how dangerous his feelings were not just for himself but for everyone?

There was a knock at the door and Tifa was forced to put aside her little talk with Cloud until later. She hurried to the front door and let the doctor in. "Thank you for coming so fast, Dr. Melvin."

He was a middle-aged man with a bit of a potbelly and a generous nature. "Not at all, my dear. Where is our patient?"

Cloud whispered Sephiroth's name helplessly and kept wiping at his face. His emerald eyes were half-lidded and blank. His breath trembled and his body shivered uncontrollably, as if he were suffering severe chills. Why then was he sweating? The symptoms were confusing to Cloud. He looked up when the doctor entered the room, then he stood up to move out of his way. Dr. Melvin put his medical bag on the floor and opened it up, producing his stethoscope.

"What was he doing when this started?" the doctor asked.

"Well, it didn't really start until after we arrived in Kalm. He's been weak and getting worse all day, but it only got this bad recently. He just threw up a little while ago and there was some sort of white foam."

The doctor listened to the stricken young man's heartbeat for a moment, then to his lungs. He pulled out a small flashlight and forced Sephiroth's eyelids open one at a time to check his pupil response. When that was done, he leaned over the swordsman and smelled his breath. The doctor heaved a sigh and stood up to face Cloud.

"I need you to be straight with me, young man. What was your friend taking?"

Cloud stared at the man as if he'd sprouted a third eye. "Excuse me?"

"He's having severe withdrawals that can only be associated with powerfully addictive narcotics or other medication. If you want me to help him, you're going to have to tell me what he's been on."

Cloud's eyes were huge in his face as he stammered, "Drugs? No way…there's just no way he would…"

He met Tifa's dark eyes and they shared an expression of understanding. "Hojo," they both said at the same time.

Dr. Melvin looked alarmed. "Did you say Hojo? Are you talking about Hojo of Shinra?"

Cloud nodded grimly, anger filling him with fresh energy. "Yes, that Hojo. This man is…well, he's his son and also his prized experiment. He was in a stasis until yesterday, so I guess his body is just now catching up to the lack of whatever drugs it's used to getting. There's no telling what kind of shit Hojo had him on."

The doctor stared down at the shivering young man in the bed and shook his head. "I don't know exactly what's going on or who this fellow is, but if you can get him to give us some idea of what he was on I can help him more."

Cloud nodded and went to Sephiroth's side, calling his name. When he didn't get a response, he looked at the doctor helplessly for a moment and then slapped Sephiroth lightly on each cheek. The green eyes flared open and focused on him, anger momentarily twisting his waxen features.

"Sephiroth, I need you to tell me what kind of pills Hojo had you on," Cloud said quickly, hoping his companion was aware enough to understand the question.

Sephiroth's eyes closed in concentration and amazingly, he was able to name off most of the medication that he was made to take daily. The doctor snatched a notepad out of his pocket and scribbled down the names of the medication, shaking his head in disgust.

"That's all I can remember," Sephiroth slurred, his eyes losing focus again.

"That's fine…you did good, Sephiroth. Just relax." Cloud couldn't stop himself from reaching out and smoothing a wayward strand of silver hair from the general's eyes. He looked at the doctor questioningly. "Well, can you do anything with that information?"

Dr. Melvin sighed heavily. "I can prescribe a sedative that will help ease his pain and prevent his body from going into shock, but he's going to have to ride this out and let his body detoxify naturally. The combination of medications that man had him on…normal people wouldn't be able to stand it. I don't know what Hojo's ultimate goal was for this young man but he had him on mood altering drugs, adrenaline enhancements, experimental drugs and a combination of other drugs that cause impotency. I'm not even sure what the experimental drugs do. It's going to be a rough ride, son."

Cloud stared helplessly from the doctor to Sephiroth and back again. "What kind of mood altering drugs are we talking about?"

"Well, normally they're designed to keep a person numb. It's generally used to combat severe depression and anxiety but my guess is he just wanted to numb this man's emotions, given what I know of Hojo and his experiments."

"You mentioned impotency," Cloud said, blushing a little. "Is that permanent?"

"It's difficult to say," the doctor answered with a sympathetic glance at his patient. "It can be permanent for some subjects, but for others the effects wear off sometime after the body is flushed of the medication. It's a 'wait and see' situation."

Cloud nodded, clenching his hands into fists. "What else can I do for him?"

"Just watch over him, keep a vomit pan by his bed, try to make him comfortable and give him the medicine I'm leaving with you as directed. I don't know how long he's been subjected to these drugs but I'm guessing for extended exposure, it could take at least two weeks for him to detoxify. You have my number, yes?"

"Yes sir."

"Just call me if his symptoms get severe or if his body temperature goes too high or too low. He may have minor seizures, too. If that happens, you'll need to have him bite down on this…" he rifled through his bag until he found a rubber mouth piece, which he handed to Cloud. Then he searched his bags again and pulled out a bottle of pills, which he opened and counted. "I'll have to bring you more of this tomorrow, but what's in here should keep him sedated tonight." He looked at Sephiroth again and clicked his tongue. "His own son. What a horrible thing."

Cloud took the bottle numbly and watched the doctor close his bag and stand up. Seeing that he was too stunned to say or do anything, Tifa saw the doctor out and left Cloud alone with Sephiroth and his thoughts.

Cloud felt the unwelcome sting of tears behind his eyes as he watched Sephiroth shiver uncontrollably. He looked at the pills in his hand and wondered how long it would take for them to take effect. Swallowing a lump in his throat, Cloud whispered, "Go to sleep, Sephiroth." He reached out and stroked the other man's hair as his body relaxed into unwilling rest.

* * *

-To be continued


	7. The mighty have fallen Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 7

Once he was sure Sephiroth was sleeping as peacefully as possible, Cloud left to find Tifa. She hadn't come back since showing the doctor out—probably because she felt too uncomfortable. He had to talk to her, had to tell her truth about himself before this went any further. She would be hurt if she found out on her own before he could come clean.

He locked his house up as he left and shivered a little at the chill in the air. Winter was on its way. _~Was it this cold while we were riding from Junon, or has the temperature dropped since the sun started setting?~_ Cloud didn't remember the bite in the air being this severe but he was angry at himself. _~Shouldn't have exposed Sephiroth to cold air like that. I should have just paid for a bus ticket and gone back for Fenrir later.~_ He was self-blaming again, but how could he not with Sephiroth lying so ill in his house? Even if the cold air hadn't made it worse, it certainly didn't help the man's condition.

He didn't notice the curious looks people gave him as he walked down the street. He didn't care that they'd seen him arrive with Sephiroth and were burning with questions. He was burdened with secrets that he'd kept from his childhood friend for too long. He paused outside Tifa's house/bar and looked at the cottage style building with trepidation. The warm light of the downstairs bar glowed through the big bay window and he could hear glasses clinking as they were washed and put away. What would she say? How would she react? She'd always been there for him and it made a cold lump form in his gut to think of her turning her back on him now.

 _~Don't be an idiot…she's stuck by you so far. Just walk up the path and go in. The bar's closing so you can have a drink with her and get it all out of your system.~_

With a decisive nod, Cloud set foot on the cobblestone path leading to his friend's front door. The "closed" sign was hanging in the small window and Cloud knew it would be locked. He knocked on the door—hesitantly at first, then more firmly. It opened a minute later and Tifa stood there, seeming unsurprised by his arrival.

"Jessica, I can finish up the rest," Tifa called over her shoulder, "why don't you go home early tonight?" She held the door open further for Cloud to enter, giving him a worried, friendly smile. He took her invitation and stepped through the doorway, heading to the bar to have a seat.

"Goodnight, Jessica," he said to the cheery-faced blonde that worked for Tifa. The girl smiled at him bashfully and waved on her way out the door.

Tifa locked up behind the other barmaid and approached the bar. "I think she has a little crush on you," she said to cloud with an amused smile. "Then again, most of the girls in this town do. You're too pretty, Cloud."

Normally that would have provoked a blush from him, followed by humble denials. Tonight it hardly fazed him. He sat hunched over on the stool, resting his arms on the bar and staring moodily at the bottles of liquor shelved against the wall. Tifa's teasing smile faded. No, Cloud didn't need friendly jibes right now. He needed a friendly ear and a drink.

"What would you like to drink, Cloud? It's on me."

The sapphire eyes focused on her and the grim suffering in them momentarily stunned Tifa. She'd seen him look like that before but now it seemed…magnified. Like everything that had ever made him get that look was all bundled up together in a knot. "I want something hard," he said softly.

She nodded. "Something hard" translated to "I'd rather be having a root canal than feeling the way I feel right now." Cloud generally stuck with beer and kept it down to two, maybe three when he drank. He only touched the heavy stuff when he was partying with friends or very upset. She made him a mixed drink that was three parts whiskey and one part soda, twisting a lime in it to ease the bite. Setting it before him, she propped her elbows on her side of the bar and waited silently.

"Thanks," Cloud said as he picked up the glass and took a couple of hefty swallows. He set the glass down and lowered his eyes, appearing to struggle with whatever he wanted to say.

 _~Oh Cloud; I think I already know what you're here to tell me. Please don't be afraid to talk to me!~_ It was crystal clear to Tifa that Sephiroth was a major part of the blonde's angst. She knew why Cloud hesitated to tell her and she thought maybe she should show some support, to encourage him. "How is he?" She asked aloud when he didn't say anything.

Cloud sighed. "No better. He's sleeping right now so I ducked out to come and see you. I have to tell you something, Tifa. You…you have to know."

She nodded patiently. "Okay. So tell me."

He looked at her again, blue eyes full of hesitation and doubt. "I…I…oh hell, I'm just going to come out and say it." He took a deep breath. "Tifa, I'm gay."

She almost giggled. Almost. She'd known that for years and he was so cute, looking at her now like it was a thunderous revelation. He obviously didn't realize that his sexuality wasn't as big a secret as he thought, with his expression so earnest and wary. She hid her amusement and shrugged. "I know."

Cloud's earnest expression faded, becoming one of surprise and discomfort. "Huh? How?"

She reached out and combed her fingers through his soft, fluffy hair. "It kind of dawned on me when Aeris and I both kept throwing ourselves at you and you never reacted…except uncomfortably. At first I thought you were just shy, or maybe it was a problem with me or Aeris or both of us. But, you've had plenty of other women throwing themselves at you over the years and you've never shown the slightest interest. You like to be _around_ women, but you've never wanted to be _with_ one. Eventually a girl figures things out, Cloud."

Cloud seemed to contemplate this, his golden brows furrowing with thought. "Oh. I guess I wasn't as stealthy as I thought. Does…anyone else know? Besides Reeve, I mean."

Tifa raised her eyebrows. "Reeve knows?"

"Yeah," Cloud said uncomfortably, "Yeah, he figured it out…at least he hinted at it."

Knowing that he wouldn't divulge further information until she answered his question concerning the others, Tifa picked at a napkin and shook her head. "I don't think the others know. Maybe Vincent—he's so much more observant than other men—but it's hard to tell with him. I can't believe anyone would think less of you if they did know, if that's what you're worried about."

"I don't know…Cid seems like the type that would freak a little," he said uncertainly.

Tifa considered this for a moment, before shaking her head. "Maybe a little at first but Cid's surprised us before. Most of his gruff rudeness is an act. His friends are more important to him than he lets on."

Cloud knew she was right. He felt a little giddy, finally having admitted his preference to one of his closest friends. _~I'm not finished yet, though,~_ he thought, _~Telling her I'm gay was cake compared to what I've got to tell her now.~_

Cloud downed the rest of his drink and set it aside. Then, to Tifa's surprise, he reached out a gloved hand and took one of hers in it, laying the other hand over the top. He looked into her eyes and said; "Here's the part that's really been tearing me up. When I tell you this, please try not to judge me, okay?" His emotions boiled up again and he swallowed, determined not to give them an outlet through tears.

Seeing his pain and his struggle, Tifa nodded. She knew what was coming…she'd already seen it earlier when she watched him nursing Sephiroth. "Go on, Cloud."

He swallowed again. "Tifa, I think…no…I _know_ …I'm in love with Sephiroth. I've been in love with him since the first time I saw him in the flesh, heard his voice, and watched the way he moved. I…I didn't want to love him and I thought maybe after everything we went through—even though most of it wasn't actually _him_ —would change that. When I saw him again, lying there in that bed…I knew, I still loved him. It's wrong and sick, but I can't help it!"

He stopped and pressed his lips together, looking at her with quiet desperation as his emotions choked off anything else he might have said. The guilt in those blue eyes was painful to look at and Tifa averted her gaze. "I know," she said in a more subdued voice than she had with his admission that he was gay.

He blinked, looking stunned and a little horrified. "You know that, too? How did you know and why didn't you tell me!"

"Calm down," Tifa said gently, squeezing his hand. "I think I've always known on some level, Cloud. Nobody hangs onto that much angst over fighting someone they don't have feelings for but I've always told myself it was hero worship…until this evening. The way you look at him and how gentle and caring you were when you were trying to help him earlier…it was like having a veil lifted from my eyes. I didn't say anything because the doctor came and it wasn't the time for me to start interrogating you over your feelings. I also needed a little time to collect myself and think about it."

His eyes were still wide—she didn't understand why he still looked so horrified when she was being as understanding and patient as she knew how. Then he said; "How can you stand to even look at me?"

"Don't do this, Cloud," Tifa begged, reaching clumsily across the bar to hug him as best as she could. "You can't choose who you love and I can't torture you for it!" She pulled away, her vision blurring with tears, and she cupped his face in her hands. "I just want you to be careful. It's dangerous Cloud. You're his warden and if you let your feelings for him get in the way of common sense, innocent people can be killed. I'm not asking you not to love him but I'm asking you to _please_ wait until you know it's safe before you act on it. Maybe when he learns the truth, he can let go of that hatred that drove him before. Maybe it'll just make him crazy again. Until you know, please be careful."

Cloud nodded and stroked her silky brown hair. "I promise, Tifa. It's not easy but I've been reminding myself of those facts every single day since I took on this responsibility. The safety of my friends and the planet comes first, you know that, right?"

She sniffed and brought her emotions to heal, smiling a little. "I know, Cloud. In the end you always do what's right. I trust you." She sighed. "Now I want a drink, too. Refill for you?"

"Yeah, thanks. I'll have to get back and check on him after this one, though."

"He's lucky to have you looking after him," she said seriously as she mixed them both a strong drink. "He'd better learn to appreciate it."

Cloud snorted. "That may never happen. Even if I do eventually think it's safe to act on how I feel he'll probably never return the favor. I don't know if he's into guys, or if he is he doesn't seem to be into me. He makes comments that almost sound like it but I know him well enough to know they're just to keep me off guard. Even if he does feel something, he could probably never…uh…" Cloud trailed off, realizing that he was not only babbling but saying way too much.

"Never what, Cloud?" Tifa said with a frown, setting his fresh drink down before him.

"Nothing," he said quickly—too quickly. He was blushing.

Tifa studied her friend and it began to dawn on her what he was hinting at. She remembered the doctor mentioning impotency as a side effect of all the drugs Hojo kept Sephiroth on. "Oh," she said, blushing herself. Of course Cloud would want to eventually…do…that. She knew enough about anatomy to have an idea of how two men would do…that…together. "Um, even if he couldn't…you could still…right?"

Poor Cloud was blushing so furiously that it was creeping down his neck. Even the tips of his ears were turning pink. "I could, but…it wouldn't be the same. It wouldn't feel…it's not the way I…"

"Oh, right," Tifa said as his meaning dawned on her. "You want him to be…and you would be…I probably should have guessed that."

"And it wouldn't be fair," Cloud rambled, feeling his pulse in his face. "Not if he couldn't really…you know…the way I can. I'd want him to like it as much as I do." He gulped too much of his drink and coughed, his eyes watering from the sting in his esophagus.

Tifa nodded rapidly and was just as red-faced as he was. "Of course! You wouldn't want…I mean you're so nice…Cloud, can we change the subject?"

"Hell yeah," Cloud gasped with relief.

They met each other's eyes and Tifa let loose a giggle. "You look like a boiled lobster. I've never seen you blush this bad before!"

"Oh yeah? Your face looks like a turnip." He grinned.

"Well, let's have a toast for getting through that conversation without passing out from embarrassment," Tifa laughed, raising her glass. Cloud clinked his against hers and together, they downed the rest of their drinks.

"I'd better get back and check on him," Cloud said anxiously as he put his now empty glass down. "I put him to sleep before I left but I'd rather try those pills the doctor gave me if I can."

Tifa bit her lip. "You _compelled_ him to sleep?"

He frowned. "Yeah, it was the best way I could think of to ease his pain fast, why?"

A tiny part of Tifa almost kept her from pointing out the danger of that. She shoved it aside; knowing that if Sephiroth died because of something Cloud inadvertently did the blonde would never forgive himself. She couldn't do that to him no matter how much part of her wanted to see Sephiroth destroyed. "Cloud, if he starts vomiting again and can't wake up to roll over…"

All of the color drained from Cloud's face. "Oh god," he cried, and then his feet hit the floor and he was running at breakneck speed. Tifa closed her eyes and tried to sort the tangle of mixed feelings, hoping for Cloud's sake that what she'd said didn't come true.

* * *

Sephiroth stood on the cliffs outside of Midgar, overlooking the ruined city. The place was trashed and he only knew a little bit about how it got that way. He felt oddly light, as if his body were trying to float but couldn't quite manage it. He caught a glimpse of something from the corner of his eye and he turned his head to look directly at it. He froze.

 _~I know that sword…Zackary's sword? What is it doing here, impaling the ground?~_

"It's my grave marker," said a familiar, light-hearted voice from behind him. "Cloud put it here as an epitaph."

Sephiroth whirled around, reaching for his masamune.

A young man with feathered and spiked black hair stood a few feet away. His blue-violet eyes held the glow of Mako and they regarded Sephiroth with easy friendship. The young man held his hands up in a surrendering gesture. "Whoa, easy Seph. I'm not here to fight with you."

Sephiroth held his stance for a moment, scanning the other man with suspicious green eyes before murmuring, "Zackary." He slowly replaced his weapon. "Is it really you?"

The young man flashed a white-toothed smile that pierced Sephiroth's heart. "In the flesh. Well, not really since I'm…you know, dead. You get the idea, though."

"This is a dream," Sephiroth said with certainty.

Zack leaned against the cliff casually, resting one boot against the wall of it and crossing his arms over his chest. "Yeah, but that's the thing about dreams—sometimes those of us on the other side can get into them and have a chat with old friends."

"Or enemies?" Sephiroth asked unhappily.

Zack uncrossed his arms and straightened up, his bright eyes soft. "You're not my enemy, Seph. You know that."

Sephiroth looked away for a moment, struggling with the ache in his chest as well as old anger. "Zackary," he said slowly. It felt good to speak his name. He looked at the other man and his eyes flashed. "Why did you have to get in my way?"

"Because it was the right thing to do," Zack answered with a tender smile. "You burned Nibelheim, Sephiroth. Those people were innocent—they never deserved any of it."

Sephiroth's head ached and he rubbed the bridge of his nose, trying to remember the events that led to his destruction. "They did. Mother said—"

"No, she didn't," Zack insisted. "The voice you were hearing when all that was happening wasn't your real mother, Seph. It was Jenova; a virus put into you and the rest of us by Hojo. She wasn't your mother and you were just her puppet."

"Shut up," Sephiroth growled painfully, "You don't know…you couldn't possibly know! Jenova—"

"Was a nasty, world-devouring life form that Hojo mistook for an Ancient," Zack interrupted, walking towards him. "I know you don't want to believe that right now and I don't blame you. That pigfucker father of yours set you up, but you'll see for yourself later on."

"How would you know all of this?" Sephiroth questioned with a snarl.

Zack shrugged. "Hey, when you're dead you learn a lot of things. You get to watch over your friends and see things you never saw in life. The tricky part is interacting with you living dudes. You have no idea what a pain in the ass it was for me to get here to talk to you."

Sephiroth forced himself to calm, rationalizing that this was all in his head. He might as well play along with it because he truly did miss Zackary. He also regretted how things ended between them and here in the dream, he could finally say so. _~I can tell him…tell him how sorry I am, without pretending I didn't care.~_

"Zackary, I…never meant for you to get hurt. I never wanted to end up fighting you." There he said it…or at least he'd explained it. _~Why can't I tell him I'm sorry? Why are those two little words so fucking hard to get out?~_

Another voice—his conscience—answered the question for him. _~Because saying you're sorry means admitting that Zackary's injury by your hands was your fault instead of his. Because you've been telling yourself that if he hadn't interfered you wouldn't have hurt him…and ultimately because if you say you're sorry now, you'll have to take responsibility for Nibelheim.~_

Sephiroth breathed heavily, fighting between his conscience and the incessant pull of Jenova's will. Could it be true that Jenova had lied to him? Was everything he found just more fabrications and if so, would he ever find out what was real?

"Seph, look at me. Please."

The general slowly raised his head and looked into the eyes that were suddenly very close to his own. Zack reached out and put his hands on his shoulders. "I know what you want to say. It'll come in time and for now, I'll take what I can get. I didn't come here for that, but it's nice to know you still care."

"You're a ghost," Sephiroth whispered, "and if it weren't for me you wouldn't be."

Zack laughed softly, running his fingers through his hair. "I missed your hair, Seph. It's like silk."

 _~Why in the hell is he going on about my hair? I'm trying to tell him something important!~_ Sephiroth worked his mouth in frustration.

"You know what else I miss, Seph?"

The silver-haired man swallowed and shook his head.

"I miss the way you say my name."

Sephiroth closed his eyes, feeling a curious burn behind them. "Zackary," he whispered.

"Like that," the other man said, kissing Sephiroth's lips briefly. "Like you're caressing it…so sensual and intimate. You only do that with people you REALLY like, Seph. Do you even know you're doing it?"

"I…I don't do that," Sephiroth denied, shaking his head.

"Sure you do. But that's the way you are. Do you want to know the nickname that Cloud used to call you when he and I would talk about you? Oh, he didn't know about us or he never would have said it out loud. I played by your rules and kept our secret."

Sephiroth opened his eyes and looked at Zack curiously. Zack grinned wolfishly and said: "Sexyroth."

The general felt one eyebrow migrating to his hairline. "You must be joking."

Zack chuckled and winked at him. "Nope. He only let it slip one or two times and when he did, I thought his face was going to explode. The kid's always had it bad for you."

Sephiroth frowned. "Strife is far too bashful to…you're pulling my leg, Fair."

"I'm not, scout's honor! He really cares about you, you know."

Sephiroth huffed. "Zackary, stop your playing. If Cloud feels anything for me it's nothing more than physical infatuation."

Zack sighed. "Okay, let's say it is just physical…why is it so hard for you to believe? You're beautiful, Seph."

Sephiroth averted his eyes and Zack smiled again. "I miss making you blush, too. Funny how a man who's meant to be the aggressor can still have qualities of a submissive."

"You would know," Sephiroth whispered.

"I took what you could give me," Zack agreed. "I'd have been up for some turnabout if we could have. You're a natural for the role."

Sephiroth's eyes flicked to him again and he smirked a little. "Tell that to my cock."

Zack's eyes traveled lower for a moment and he grinned like a fiend. "You never know. I can tell you this, you'd put someone's eye out with that thing—"

"Zackary," Sephiroth warned, huffing a little with unwilling laughter.

"Ha, made you smile."

Sephiroth gazed at him and shook his head. "That was always your goal at the end of the day."

"Yeah, well that and to hear you say my name. Hey, you know you say Cloud's name like that too, don'tcha?"

Sephiroth recoiled. "I do not."

"Yeah, you do. You know what _that_ means, don'tcha?" Zack was giving him a sly, knowing look that was all-too-familiar.

"I don't have time for this," Sephiroth said petulantly.

Zack's expression changed, becoming earnest and a little urgent. "No, you really don't. I need you to do two things for me, Seph."

Puzzled, the silver-haired man nodded.

"First, I need you to roll over. Second, give my regards to Cloud."

Sephiroth frowned, blinking at the other man. "'Roll over'?" He echoed, "Zackary, what are you talking about?"

Zack nodded empathetically. "Yup. I need you to roll onto your side. Do it now, Seph. I mean it."

Sephiroth backed away from the man as he found it suddenly difficult to breathe. "I…I don't…"

"Roll over, Sephiroth! Hurry!"

The general felt his body then, though he was still with Zack overlooking Midgar. He felt himself on his back and for some reason he was choking. The realization of what was happening struck him and he fought to make his leaden body respond. His muscles were reluctant to comply at first and he started to wonder if it was even worth the fight. Zack was yelling at him, telling him to get his ass rolled over. It was ridiculous and yet all too real.

Finally he managed to twitch to the side and he was coughing, fighting for breath while his stomach heaved.

 _~Fantastic…choking in my own vomit. What a ridiculous way to die.~_

"That's it, Seph…you did it!"

Zack, Midgar and the cliff began to fade from his vision and Sephiroth tried to reach out, tried to say those two damnable words that wouldn't come before.

"Remember what I said. Give Cloud my regards. Oh, and remember he's just trying to help you. Don't be too hard on the kid." Zack's form was now only a blurred shadow that was waving goodbye to him.

* * *

"Sephiroth! Wake up!" Cloud was at his side immediately, cradling his head and putting the pan underneath to catch the bile and foam that came up. He'd made it into the bedroom to find Sephiroth getting sick again, but somehow the silver-haired man had managed to turn to the side so that it wasn't drowning him.

Sephiroth's eyes fluttered open and he coughed desperately, reflexively grabbing hold of Cloud's sweater as he expelled more poison from his system. The blonde held his head steady, managing to get his hair out of the way as he heaved.

"I'm sorry," Cloud was saying over and over again, his voice panicked and relieved at once.

Sephiroth didn't understand and his stomach and throat burned too much to try. After what seemed like ages of heaving, his stomach was empty again and the spasms slowed and stopped. Gasping for breath, he lay there trying to separate dreams from reality. He closed his eyes as Cloud wiped his face, mouth, neck and chest off with a soapy washcloth, hardly aware that he'd gotten some of the mess on him.

Remembering what Zack asked of him, Sephiroth raised his head with effort and looked into Cloud's worried blue eyes. "Zackary…sends his regards." He collapsed on his side and closed his eyes, leaving Cloud to stare at him in confusion.

"Delirious," Cloud whispered. "That's all it is."

* * *

-To be continued


	8. The mighty have fallen Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 8

Cloud hardly slept that night. He made a pallet at the foot of the bed and rested there when he could, but he spent most of the night supporting Sephiroth as he vomited up toxins. He tried to get him to take the pills but the silver-haired man couldn't hold them down long enough for them to take effect, so Cloud concentrated on making him as comfortable as possible. The few times Sephiroth opened his eyes, he didn't seem to recognize Cloud or know where he was. He occasionally muttered things that the blonde assumed were brought about by fever dreams and memories.

The next morning, Dr. Melvin stopped by as promised with a full bottle of the pills he'd recommended. He examined Sephiroth to determine his progress and to Cloud's relief, he seemed optimistic. He wasn't surprised to hear that Sephiroth hadn't been able to hold the pills down long enough for them to work, but it had been worth a try.

"The first stage of detoxification is the foulest," explained the doctor, "Once he's rid himself of the worst of it through vomiting, most of the rest will come out in his sweat and urine. He should be able to take the pills by then to help him get the rest he needs. He needs to drink as much clear fluid as possible and as soon as he can eat solid food, you should try to get him to eat fresh vegetables and fruit as well as high protein foods. His color looks good for a man in his condition and he's detoxifying more quickly than average."

The doctor paused and searched Cloud's face for a moment, looking like he wanted to ask something. He seemed to change his mind a moment later. "I imagine your friend should start feeling more like himself within a week."

The doctor's prognosis didn't surprise Cloud at all, considering Sephiroth's enhanced biological makeup. He thanked the man and promised to call him if there were any negative changes to Sephiroth's condition. Before he left, Dr. Melvin peered at Cloud and suggested he try to get some rest as well. Once he was gone Cloud went to the bathroom and saw himself in the mirror.

 _~I don't know who looks worse right now, Sephiroth or Me.~_

He didn't care, though. He'd been sleep deprived before and Sephiroth was almost through the worst of it. With a sigh, Cloud went into the kitchen and made a pot of coffee. The grounds were stale since he rarely touched the stuff but it still perked him up enough to go through his messages and return any important calls. He wasn't surprised to find that the bulk of them were from his old comrades that hadn't yet been filled in on the Sephiroth situation.

He spaced his return calls, taking care of things around the house, checking on Sephiroth and getting groceries in between the calls. It was hard and painful because he had to take the time to explain the same thing to each one of them—and of course, argue his case until they accepted his choice. By the end of the day he was beat. He had to force himself to eat something and shower. The hard pallet at the foot of his bed may as well have been the world's most comfortable mattress, because as soon as Cloud lay down and closed his eyes he was dead to the world.

The next day was much the same, except that he was able to get Sephiroth to drink some water and take some of the medicine. Cloud exhausted himself again trying to keep the other man warm when he shivered and cool when he heated up. When he went to bed that night he just grabbed the first warm pair of pajamas he saw and slipped them on. He again fell asleep almost as soon as he closed his eyes.

* * *

Sephiroth regained full awareness on the fourth day, when the nausea finally passed. He awoke from restless sleep suffering body aches and chills, but he had regained enough strength to sit up in the bed. He peered blearily around the room with confusion and took in all of the details of his environment. There wasn't much to the room. The red brick walls were bare of decoration; there was a small closet in the wall to his left, a wooden end table with a plain lamp resting on it to his right and a half-used candle sconce hanging on the right wall.

Trying to gather his scrambled thoughts, the swordsman rubbed his head and decided to risk an attempt at getting up. He needed to take a leak and he wasn't about to call out for Cloud's help. He carefully swung his legs over the side of the bed and started to put his feet down, but they landed on something warm and firm that didn't remotely feel like a floor. Frowning, Sephiroth leaned over to see what was in his footpath.

There lay his captor, curled up on the hardwood floor with a thick blanket serving as his mattress and a single pillow supporting his head. Another thick blanket covered his body. Cloud was fast asleep, despite having been partially stepped on. He lay on his side with his hands folded beneath his cheek, sleeping with ridiculously picturesque innocence. His golden lashes lay against his cheek and his nearly delicate looking lips were parted. His blonde hair looked no more disheveled than usual and Sephiroth pondered how it managed to hold that style and still move.

Sephiroth took advantage of the young man's slumber and curiously brushed the toes of his right foot over Cloud's hair. He was surprised at how soft and clean it felt. How did Strife accomplish that spiked style without overuse of gel or spray? Was his hair just naturally gravity defying? He remembered Zackary's hair accomplishing the same odd feat.

Sephiroth grimaced as chills wracked his body again and his bladder ached. He had to find a way to step over Cloud without falling on him. He at least owed him the consideration of not disturbing his rest.

 _~Pissing all over myself would be the final insult in this madness.~_ the general thought with disgust, _~I'm done with being treated like a drooling baby.~_

He wrinkled his nose as he caught the odor coming from his body. It was the sour smell of toxins, coating his skin and tainting his breath. If—no, WHEN he made it to the bathroom he was going to bathe and rinse his mouth out. Then he'd see about washing his pants, since they were the only article of clothing he had that he could reasonably expect to slip in and out of on his own. If Cloud couldn't handle the sight of him in a bath towel until the job was finished, he would simply have to avert his eyes.

It only took a few seconds for Sephiroth to take stock of the situation and devise a strategy. By crawling to the foot of the bed and slipping his legs over the side, he was able to get up without disturbing Cloud. When he stood up he was forced to take a step toward the wall and lean against it for a moment to catch his breath and wait out another wave of trembling. When it passed he used the wall for support and made his way to the door.

* * *

Cloud thought he heard his washing machine going. It sounded like it was on the spin cycle, judging by the clanking noise accompanying the whirr of the motor. He grumbled and pulled his blanket over his head, convinced he was just imagining it. The noise persisted and it eventually dragged him out of the comfort of sleep.

He pulled his left hand out from under his cheek and raised his arm to peer at his wristwatch. It was late morning. Deciding he'd had plenty of sleep, he sat up and stretched, grimacing at the stiffness in his joints caused by sleeping on the hard floor. He yawned and scratched his head, but immediately went still when he noticed that his bedroom door was shut and he could still hear his washing machine.

 _~What the hell? Someone's in my house, washing clothes?~_

The only explanation he could think of at first was that it was Tifa, who had a spare key to his house. Maybe her own washing machine was broken and she slipped in to do her laundry? She must have closed the door to try and keep the noise from waking him and Sephiroth up.

 _~Sephiroth…~_

Cloud got to his feet and looked on his bed to find…nothing. He blinked. The covers were pulled back up and smoothed neatly. He could see a single strand of long, pale hair on the dark blue pillowcase, but the owner of that piece of hair was gone.

Cloud's mind raced with horrible possibilities and he rushed to the door, terrified that his charge had somehow regained all of his superhuman strength overnight and he'd find Tifa's head rolling around in his washing machine.

"Sephiroth!" Cloud yelled as he barreled down the hall. The laundry room was at the other end of the house, down a short hall opposite the living room. Cloud was running so fast and focused on a single thought, he ran through the living room and straight past the silver-haired man.

Sephiroth sat on the couch, watching with interest as the blonde streaked by as though Ifrit had set his ass on fire. He almost answered Cloud's call, but instead waited to see how long it would take him to realize he was there. All he'd seen of Cloud before he disappeared into the opposite hallway was a blur of red pajamas and fluffy hair.

He heard the stomping footsteps skid to a halt and return. Sephiroth sipped the glass of water he'd poured for himself and watched the entrance of the hallway expectantly. A pale face with wide sapphire eyes, surrounded by downy golden hair, poked out of the hallway to regard him.

"That was quite the dash, Cloud. I think you came close to breaking the sound barrier." Sephiroth smirked with amusement.

Cloud looked the general up and down, his brain taking in little details—such as the fact that he was sitting there in nothing but a towel and his flowing silver hair hung damp around his body. Though his complexion and lips still held the pallor of illness, his too handsome features had regained all of the usual confidence and arrogance. His hand shook a little as he set the glass of water he was holding on the coffee table, but otherwise he seemed to have regained most of his muscle control.

Cloud's panic faded, to be replaced by a confused jumble of desire, concern, embarrassment and irritation. He started toward the tall, proud man and opened his mouth to…to…

 _~What…ask him where the body is?~_

Cloud realized now that the scenario he'd imagined upon first waking up and finding Sephiroth missing was stupid. His sleepy mind hadn't had time to rationalize yet and it had jumped to the worst conclusion, probably because of the conversation he and Tifa had the night he brought Sephiroth home. The man was in a towel. His hair was wet. The washing machine was going.

 _~Hello, stupid…he's washing his fucking pants! Do you have to constantly be a blonde stereotype around him?~_

To make matters even worse, Sephiroth was eyeing his pajamas now and by the look on his face he was just barely holding back a smile. Cloud frowned and glanced down at himself. In his exhaustion the night before, he'd just grabbed the first thing out of his pj and underwear drawer that felt warm and soft. For the first time he realized, with dawning horror, that it happened to be the pajamas that Yuffie had given him as a gag gift for his birthday last year. The style and color of the two-piece outfit wasn't anything special, but the words: "Hot Stuff" were scattered all over them as well as illustrated, deep red cartoon lips.

Cloud looked up again at Sephiroth and twisted his mouth. "What? They were a gag gift and I wasn't paying attention when I put them on last night."

"Clearly," Sephiroth said with a mocking smile.

Now he was getting angry. Cloud started forward again, intending to tell Sephiroth that his poor selection in nightwear was a result of taking care of him and losing sleep. He didn't realize that Vincent's briefcase was sitting on the floor by the couch and he tripped on it. Gasping a curse, he tried to catch himself but gravity inevitably pulled him directly toward Sephiroth.

Sephiroth was expecting Cloud's advance but he wasn't expecting his clumsiness. He saw the gem-bright eyes go round with alarm and the next thing he knew, the blonde was falling on him. He caught Cloud's lighter body in his arms as he literally fell into his lap. During the impact Sephiroth felt Cloud's mouth press against his shoulder. He inadvertently grabbed the blonde's ass in the process of trying to keep his face from going into the couch. Sephiroth allowed himself the luxury of admitting that he liked how firm and round Cloud's ass was, before he helped the struggling blonde into a sitting position.

Somehow in the process of recovering from the fall, Cloud ended up straddling Sephiroth's lap, with his knees pressed into the couch cushions. Sephiroth's hands were resting on Cloud's hips. Cloud's hands were splayed on Sephiroth's chest. Lazy, emerald-green eyes stared into stunned, sapphire-blue ones as both men became aware of the compromising position they were in.

"Throwing yourself at me, Cloud?" Sephiroth purred.

Cloud's lips parted and his cheeks colored a little as he tried to come up with something to say. Sephiroth's mesmerizing gaze held him fast.

 _~So close…his mouth is so close and I want him so bad…~_

Cloud's groin hardened, pressing against Sephiroth's between the barrier of nightclothes and towel. He licked his lips and nearly gave in. He started to close the distance between their mouths when the realization that there was no answering swell of hardness from the other man's crotch rudely awakened him.

 _~It's not right,~_ Cloud thought in despair, _~even if he doesn't reject me he can't take me, and he can't get off on me taking him! Besides, I promised Tifa I'd wait.~_

Sephiroth watched the blonde on his lap, waiting to see what he would do. He knew how much Cloud wanted him—the evidence was pressing hard against his crotch—but his spontaneous flirtation with him this time was inspired by sudden curiosity. He wanted to know if a kiss from Cloud would feel as pleasant as he thought it would. He was therefore disappointed when the young man struggled out of his lap and off of the couch, but he wasn't very surprised. What did surprise him was the urge he felt to tighten his grip on the other man and deny him his escape. If he weren't so weakened he might have tried it.

Cloud turned away from Sephiroth in an attempt to hide the effect that the brief encounter had on his body. "You should have woken me up," he heard himself say, "You're going to end up overdoing it and hurting yourself." He didn't look at Sephiroth, afraid that if he saw that chest, those eyes, that hair and those lips, he'd lose his resolve and climb right back onto his lap.

"I managed on my own," Sephiroth replied flatly. "If you think I'm going to ask for your help to rid myself of bodily wastes and bathe, you're deluded." He regretted letting himself go earlier. They were stupid thoughts to entertain, especially when he hadn't determined yet whether Strife's alleged proof of his origins was genuine or not.

Cloud couldn't really blame him for that, so he shrugged. "Fine. You should try to eat, though. I'll make some toast and if that goes down well we can move on from there." He looked down at the briefcase he'd tripped over and he looked at Sephiroth again. "Are you planning on reading through that now? Maybe you should wait until you're recovered."

"I think it's best to do it sooner," Sephiroth answered, glancing at it before returning Cloud's gaze. "My body is weakened but my mind is working just fine. Remember Cloud, I still haven't decided where I intend to stand, yet."

Cloud's stare was level and his silent regrets were just as strong. "I remember."

 _~And that's why I'm glad I snapped out of it before I kissed you.~_

* * *

To ward off the chill in the air and the chills in Sephiroth's body from the withdrawals, Cloud lit the fireplace in the living room. The other man had made no complaints but then again he wouldn't have, even if he were going hypothermic.

"Did you keep your barracks in this state when you were in training, Cloud?" Sephiroth didn't look up from the document he was reading as he said it. He nibbled on the half-burnt piece of toast that Cloud had served him and scanned the paper in his hand with a frown.

Cloud had just sat down in the armchair a few feet away and he swallowed a groan. _~I knew it! I knew he'd have some snide comment about the clutter!~_ Aloud, he said; "No, and the place isn't usually this messy. I run supply deliveries to people sometimes because a lot of roads are too trashed for cars, so I'm not always around to worry about the mess."

Sephiroth nodded. "I see."

Cloud took some swallows from his apple juice and watched the other man warily. Sephiroth seemed so cultured and authoritative, despite being dressed in only a towel. He could imagine him reading the newspaper and drinking a cup of coffee in any other setting. It made Cloud feel immature for some reason. It also made him want to crawl across the floor to him, pull his towel off and tease his long, thick member to hardness with his mouth.

Sephiroth felt the blonde's stare and he glanced at him sidelong. Cloud blushed when their eyes met, quickly looking away. Sephiroth suppressed an amused smile and resumed reading. Depending on what he found out in these documents, Sephiroth decided he might consider exploring Cloud's reactions to him further. He could see that the papers were genuine but he hadn't read far enough to find anything more than what he already knew concerning Hojo's theories. He could have chosen to scan them until he found something more personally useful but Sephiroth was a firm believer in being thorough. He didn't want to miss anything he might not have known before.

"I'm going to go up to the attic and work out a little," Cloud announced. "Don't be stubborn if you need help with anything, just call out."

Sephiroth nodded mutely, his narrowed green eyes steadily moving over the document he held.

* * *

Cloud changed into a pair of sweatpants and went up the stairs to his spacious attic, where he kept his weights and punching bags. The attic was chillier than the ground floor but he ignored the cold against his naked upper body, knowing that he'd warm up soon enough. A good workout usually left him feeling calm and satisfied, which was what he thought he needed right now. He started with stretches first, loosening his muscles and tendons. Once he'd completed that, he moved on to the hand weights. His sapphire eyes were narrowed and determined as he pumped the weights and thought about what might come in the future. It would be much harder to control Sephiroth if the new information upset him as badly as the old. Cloud couldn't imagine it doing so but Sephiroth was hard to predict.

He hoped that Sephiroth would change his ambitions once he discovered that he was born of a human woman and not a monster. He hoped the man would reject Jenova's lies and whispers and while he never expected him to become "good" (even in his days as a renowned hero, Sephiroth wasn't inherently "good"), he hoped that he would at least work on the side of good. If he could do that, Cloud would have the chip removed and set him free. He'd have to be absolutely positive before releasing him but in his heart, the blonde hated seeing the proud, beautiful general in chains and he hated being the keeper of those chains even more.

As Vincent had said, there was no way to predict the outcome. Waiting and hoping was all that Cloud could do.

* * *

Nearly two hours later, Cloud stopped working out and went downstairs to have a shower. He reached the bottom of the spiral staircase and moved down the hall, passing the laundry room on his way into the living room. The main bathroom was next to his bedroom down the opposite hallway. He stopped for a moment when he found Sephiroth sitting exactly where he'd left him, only now he was wearing his newly washed and dried black pants. He hadn't put on his harness or leather jacket yet, so his chest remained delightfully bare. Not that the other clothing articles hid much of the best parts of Sephiroth's chest but they would have been at least some cover.

 _~I really need to look into getting him some clothes, as soon as he's up to it,~_ Cloud thought as his blue eyes caressed Sephiroth's pectorals and abdominal muscles of their own accord. _~Too much more of seeing his chest and I'm going to lose my cool and stop caring whether he can get a hard-on or not.~_ He just couldn't help it—the man's chest was so fucking beautiful and sexy…like the rest of him.

Sephiroth hadn't looked up when he entered the room. He was absorbed in the documents and by the way he paused now and then to frown and rub his temples, he was having trouble dealing with the information he was finding. It was then that Cloud saw the neat stack of papers that Sephiroth had already gone through resting on the coffee table. He was already more than halfway through them!

 _~God the man can read! To go through all that confusing mess that quick…he must have read every book in the Shinra mansion when he locked himself in there!~_

Not wanting to disturb him, Cloud said nothing and began to cross the room as quietly as he could. As soon as he started to pass in front of him, Sephiroth glanced up, looked back down and immediately looked up at him again. Cloud stopped and swallowed, wondering what the expression of contemplation on the other man's face meant.

Sephiroth noticed that Cloud was shirtless and sweaty and he was briefly distracted from his deep thoughts at the sight of the blonde's lithe form. He observed that although Cloud was slight of build, his muscles were finely toned. It didn't really surprise him, considering the strength the young man had demonstrated in the reactor years ago, but for some reason he'd expected him to be on the skinny side. His body was nicely built and well-proportioned to his size, his nipples were small and pink and his chest and stomach were smooth and free of body hair…except for the soft-looking, sparse trail of fine golden hair that started as a thin line below his navel and widened subtly further down. The rest of it disappeared beneath the elastic of Cloud's sweatpants, where Sephiroth imagined it framed the blonde's genitals perfectly.

Sephiroth thought that Cloud was most certainly aesthetically pleasing to the eye and though it didn't awaken his groin, he entertained himself with a brief fantasy of running his hands over that slight, sweet frame. It would undoubtedly be a pleasing experience, to stroke the soft skin and make the blonde harden with arousal. Sephiroth put the fantasy away with a bit of regret and let his eyes travel to Cloud's face. By the expression he found there, the young man didn't know what to think of his lingering gaze.

 _~Good. I don't mind enjoying thoughts of more pleasant encounters with Strife, so long as he doesn't know about them.~_

Cloud shifted uncomfortably, unnerved by that mute, pondering stare. "I'm going to have a shower and change," he finally said when Sephiroth's silence got to be too much for him. "Did you want to have a break after that to go to the shops for some clothes?"

Sephiroth considered the question for a moment. "Not today, Cloud. I'd like to finish this first."

Cloud nodded and started to turn away but he noticed the trembling in the other man's hand as he reached for another document. Sephiroth was hiding it well but his condition wasn't as drastically improved as Cloud first thought. He realized that Sephiroth was probably still feeling too weak to go out anywhere and it wouldn't surprise him if he were still a bit nauseous. Cloud swallowed again as he walked away, knowing that at this rate Sephiroth would be finished with all of the research documents by the end of the day, and when that happened things were either going to get very ugly or improve.

* * *

Cloud spent the rest of the day fine-tuning, polishing and oiling Fenrir. It soothed his mind to work on the motorcycle and he talked to it as if it were a chocobo while he worked.

"What do you think, boy? Do you think he'll got nuts again or will he come to his senses and give the world back a hero it still needs?"

Cloud smirked and shook his head, annoyed with himself for being so dramatic…and so pathetic. "Look at me, Fenrir—still thinking of him as a shining hero and still drawn to him like a moth to the flame. I'm a real bonehead."

Though the cycle couldn't respond in any real way, it was still a comfort to confide in it. Cloud had put so much care in building Fenrir he really felt like it had a spirit and that on some level, it could understand his words and empathize with him.

Cloud completed his loving work and peered through the high-mounted window on the garage door, noticing that it was getting dark outside. Sephiroth would probably be finished with the documents soon and it was close to time for dinner. He wasn't a great cook but he was pretty good at throwing stuff in a pot and making a decent stew. Provided he didn't end up having to knock Sephiroth out to stop a repeat of Nibelheim, he'd try to make a decent supper tonight.

* * *

Cloud entered the living room slowly, reluctantly. He could see Sephiroth, standing up between the couch and the coffee table with a glass of water clutched in his right hand and a worn document clutched in his left. The hand holding the document squeezed into a fist as Cloud approached, balling the paper up. Cloud instinctively knew that it was the last document in the collection and his heart alternately ached with impending loss and pounded with impending doom.

Licking dry lips, the blonde approached. "Sephiroth," he said softly. Every muscle in his body was tense as he watched the general's head turn to regard him. The slit pupils of the blazing green eyes were narrowed thinly—a bad sign.

"Are you certain Hojo's dead?" Sephiroth questioned in a low, dangerous voice.

Cloud nodded. "Yeah. We're ninety-nine percent sure."

The pupils expanded slightly. "Ninety-nine percent?"

"Well, we thought you were dead more than once and you came back," Cloud answered truthfully, "so at this point I'm thinking there's always a chance…but yeah, he's dead."

Sephiroth didn't move. His jaw was tense as he asked; "And Lucrecia? My…mother?"

He'd hesitated when he called Lucrecia his mother but Cloud didn't detect a note of sarcasm. The hesitation was due to Sephiroth being unused to thinking of his mother as Lucrecia, not denial. The fact that he accepted the truth wasn't enough to relieve Cloud just yet.

"She's gone too. I'm sorry, Sephiroth. I think she died sometime after Hojo stopped her from—"

"—Interfering," finished the silver-haired man darkly, his eyes unfocusing and his mouth hardening.

Cloud nodded. "From what I know, she loved you. She never wanted…this…for you."

Sephiroth's eyes focused on him again and Cloud saw the struggle between rage, grief and bewilderment in them. He started forward, not knowing what he could possibly say or do to help but determined to do something. The glass in Sephiroth's right hand cracked and shattered from the force of his grip and Cloud's newest and most pressing concern became the damage that the other man was doing to his hand. Blood dripped from between Sephiroth's knuckles as he crushed the glass and closed his hand into a fist.

"Sephiroth!" Cloud cried as he launched himself across the distance and grabbed the other man's right wrist. If he felt any pain, Sephiroth didn't react to it. He was breathing heavily and staring blankly at the spot Cloud had just vacated, oblivious to his injury or the fact that he was making it worse by squeezing the broken shards into his skin.

Cloud's mind raced as he tried to pry the general's fingers open. It was like trying to move a statue made of steel. "Shit," he swore, "Open your fucking hand!"

Compelled by the blonde's order, Sephiroth obeyed. Cloud worked fast to pull out the shards that he could with his bare fingers, ignoring the bright blood that got onto his clothes. He stood up and tugged the taller man's wrist. "Come with me to the kitchen so I can rinse it and see what the hell I'm doing," he demanded.

Sephiroth followed mechanically, his rage having momentarily stunned him as his mind worked out the details and struggled to cope. He felt the sting of his wounds distantly, saw his companion working frantically over his bleeding hand. Slowly, he brought himself under control and came back to the world. The first thing that stuck in his mind was how diligently Cloud was cleaning his injuries. The blonde yanked a kitchen drawer open and grabbed a dishtowel, quickly binding the damaged hand to staunch the bleeding as well as he could. Then he looked up at Sephiroth with determined, aching blue eyes.

"You don't have to be alone in this," Cloud said. His voice was masculine and sweet at once and his hands applied pressure to the makeshift bandage. "Sephiroth, don't go away. Not this time."

Sephiroth slowly tilted his head, comprehending the young man's emotional words slowly. "Cloud," he said softly, "I'm beginning to believe what Zack said about you."

Confusion played over the blonde's sculpted, youthful features. "I don't know what that means," Cloud murmured, "but you look like you're at least trying to stay with me. I'm going to call the doctor, okay? Promise me you won't move."

Sephiroth nodded. He didn't know what he wanted to do anymore but as of this moment, arguing with Cloud wasn't it.

* * *

-To be continued.


	9. The mighty have fallen Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 9

While waiting for the doctor to come, Cloud talked to Sephiroth about mundane things, trying to keep him lucid. The silver-haired man sat on the couch beside him, listening to his words and responding as necessary, but was obviously deep in thought. Cloud was encouraged by Sephiroth's coherency and unlike the time when he first found snatches of information, there was sanity in his green eyes. If anything, the man seemed emotionally stunned. Cloud didn't want to take any chances, though. The cold knot of fear in his stomach wouldn't go away until he knew that his companion wouldn't go on a blind, justice-seeking killing spree.

"Sephiroth, do you remember the year of the snowstorm?" Cloud asked as he tightened the makeshift bandage. "You were drilling the hell out of us in the field even though the snow was five feet deep."

Sephiroth looked at him. "Vaguely. I was resentful of being assigned to train a bunch of cadets."

Cloud forced a smile. "Yeah, you made us pay for it too. I fell into a snow drift, thinking it was a hill."

He was rewarded with a tragically brief twitch of a smile.

"All I could see of you was a tuft of blonde hair sticking out of the snow," Sephiroth said softly. Silently the general thought back on that day, remembering how exasperated he'd been and how he'd thought it was a wonder that the small blonde boy had passed requirements and made it into the military. He remembered Zackary pulling Cloud out of the drift and warming him up in a blanket, making the kid drink hot chocolate and telling him jokes while his teeth chattered. He also remembered thinking that Cloud was ridiculously cute and out of place in the military.

Cloud studied his face, hoping to see the marble features relax at least a little. Maybe he was expecting too much, so soon after Sephiroth finished reading all of the details about his life that had remained so carefully hidden for all this time. On any other man the grim expression could have been diagnosed as righteous anger and pain. On Sephiroth, though…

 _~Please, don't let it take you away again.~_

Hardly able to breathe through the constriction in his chest caused by the thought of losing the other man to madness again, Cloud became desperate. Hardly aware of what he was doing, he stopped fussing with the dishtowel binding Sephiroth's hand and reached up to cup his face. There was a subtle flash of confusion in the reptilian green eyes and Cloud stared into them and whispered; "Stay with me."

Held by the expressive blue eyes, Sephiroth parted his lips. He'd only seen that level of devotion and care for him once before, in the eyes of Zack. The young man cupping his jaw didn't move or say anything else, he just sat there showing all of his emotions in his eyes.

 _~It's…true,~_ Sephiroth thought silently, _~Strife really cares for me. Why? How can he…after everything that's happened?~_

A knock on the door broke the spell and Cloud was forced to release Sephiroth's face and eyes to answer it. He let Dr. Melvin in and told a little white lie, fabricating that Sephiroth had accidentally knocked the glass over and in his attempt to catch it, he squeezed too hard and shattered it. The doctor expressed surprise at how rapidly Sephiroth was recovering from withdrawals but he seemed pleased by the progress despite his shock. He unwrapped Sephiroth's hand and examined it.

Sephiroth didn't utter a single complaint as the doctor placed a tray on the floor to catch blood and began to tweeze out the bits of glass that Cloud hadn't gotten. He winced silently a few times but kept his eyes lowered and held still while his injuries were treated and stitched up.

"You're lucky you didn't sever a nerve or an artery, son," Dr. Melvin said as he finished the stitching and wrapped the hand. "As it is, you won't be able to write or perform other delicate functions with this hand for a little while."

"He's left-handed," Cloud informed impulsively. Now that he thought of it, he was glad Sephiroth hadn't injured his sword hand. He shouldn't be considering how dangerous the man was, but it was comforting to know that his fighting skills wouldn't be overly compromised.

"Ah, a South Paw," Dr. Melvin grinned. "My son's the same. Well, we're finished here. I'll leave you with a roll of bandages and some antiseptic. Change the bandages every other day until it stops spotting and I'll check at the end of the week to see when the stitches can come out." He looked at Sephiroth and sighed. "Try not to injure yourself any further, young man. You've had a hard enough time of it as it is."

Sephiroth nodded wordlessly.

* * *

Cloud offered to take the couch so that Sephiroth could have a bed to sleep in, but Sephiroth declined and insisted that the couch was fine. When he was strong enough to stand and walk without getting winded or shaky, Cloud took him shopping. Sephiroth purchased a new wardrobe and a dresser to keep the clothing in and Cloud cleared out the small spare room next to the laundry room that he'd been using for storage, throwing away what he didn't need and storing the rest in the garage. It wasn't much but he thought that since their arrangement was pretty much indefinite, Sephiroth should have a room of his own—at least to keep his clothes and change in until Cloud decided whether to stay in Kalm or buy a house somewhere out of the city.

Sephiroth's physical condition and injuries recovered rapidly and much to Cloud's relief, his emotional state remained stable. The psychological wounds were slower and less obvious to heal but the silver-haired man retained his sanity and seemed a little less distant with each passing day. Dr. Melvin expressed amazement at how quickly Sephiroth's wounds healed but he asked no questions and removed the stitches after a week. As another week came and went, Sephiroth seemed to be close to full strength again—which meant Cloud could begin looking into buying a house somewhere and either selling or renting out his home in Kalm. He'd been waiting for the other man to be recovered enough to help with the move without straining himself.

Cloud began to feel confident enough to let Sephiroth out of his sight and he started visiting Tifa again and keeping her up to date. She was relieved that Sephiroth was dealing with the truth well but she wasn't ready to start trusting him and she said as much to Cloud. She also hinted that she was a little concerned that Cloud might set himself up for heartache if he wasn't careful with his feelings.

"I don't plan on making any moves on him unless he gives me a reason to think he'd welcome them," Cloud assured her. "I don't want to crowd him and I don't want to make an idiot of myself. I also want to be sure he's as stable as he seems to be, before I let myself get too close."

Tifa looked relieved. "I'm glad. I saw him on the street yesterday and if I didn't know who he was and what he's capable of, I'd be swooning over him like all of the other girls in town. It must be hard to resist him when you feel the way you do."

Cloud grinned. "He's got the girls swooning, does he?"

"Well, yeah. I mean, he's gorgeous," Tifa admitted with a shrug. "The women here have been practically breaking their necks between the two of you. Haven't you noticed all of the double-takes you both get?"

"I can believe it with him," Cloud chuckled, flushing a little.

"You should hear the whispered rumors, too," Tifa said mischievously. "You wouldn't believe how many girls fantasize about what the two of you do in that house. I'm surprised you haven't caught peepers yet."

Cloud choked on his beer and cast a look around the bar. "Shhh," he hissed, blushing furiously. It was the middle of the day and there were a few customers in the bar. Cloud couldn't be sure but he thought one woman was leaning in her chair as if trying to catch what Tifa was saying.

Tifa giggled, swatting the blonde lightly with her bar rag. "You're so cute when you're embarrassed, Cloud." She sobered and bit her lip. "Cloud, I've thought about it and I don't want you to move away. It's your choice of course, but I know you were only considering it because of me."

"Are you sure?" he asked.

She nodded. "Yeah. I can learn to live with Sephiroth being here, now that I know he's aware of the truth and not going psycho. I actually kind of prefer it because if he's here, I can help you keep an eye on him and you'll still be my neighbor."

Cloud was touched, not only by her dedication but also by her strength of resolve. He smiled at her. "Thanks, Tifa. We'll stay here, then."

* * *

Now that it was established that there was no need to move, Cloud decided to buy a bed for Sephiroth. He did it while he was out, without telling the other man he was doing it because he knew that Sephiroth would insist on paying for it and Cloud wanted it to be a gift. Knowing Sephiroth's taste and his preference for efficiency over luxury, the blonde picked out a sturdy, dark wood single bed with a mattress that was soft enough for comfort but firm enough for support. He scheduled for it to be delivered and went home in a good mood.

When he stepped through the front door of his house, he immediately noticed something different. It took a couple of seconds for him to realize that the difference was that the house was clean—thoroughly clean, to be exact. While he stared around in surprise, Sephiroth emerged from the west hallway.

"Yes, it's clean," the swordsman said when Cloud blinked at him. "And yes, I'll decapitate the first person to crack a 'housewife' joke because of it."

Cloud tried to hide his grin and failed. He cleared his throat as the other man's eyes flashed. "Check. No housewife jokes. How did you get it this clean, though?" He looked around again in amazement.

"With a bucket, mop, soap and a dishrag," Sephiroth answered dryly. "It's housekeeping, not rocket science, Cloud."

The blonde shivered involuntarily at the sound of his name. Somehow the way Sephiroth said it—even when he was irritated with him—was sensual. "Okay, I admit I'm lousy at domestics," Cloud said, "But you didn't have to do this. I'd have done it eventually."

Sephiroth smirked. "I've accepted that I'm stuck here, Cloud. What I won't accept is living in filth."

"Filth! It wasn't _that_ dirty!"

"Maybe not to you," Sephiroth shrugged.

Cloud sighed. The only thing that kept him from remaining indignant was the fact that Sephiroth looked like a male model in his snug black jeans, knee-high black boots and button-up green shirt. The collar of the shirt was open and the top two buttons undone, exposing a tasteful and intriguing view of his neck and clavicle. His silver hair flowed around his shoulders and down his back like shiny silk. It was hard to stay annoyed with someone that looked so damned beautiful.

"Fine, I'm a slob," Cloud said with a shrug of his own. Lifting the brown paper bag in his arms, he said; "I bought you some apples while I was out." He'd learned that Sephiroth's favorite fruit was green apples and he noticed that morning that his supply had run out.

Sephiroth looked uncomfortable. "Appreciated," he said after a moment's hesitation.

Cloud smiled crookedly and headed for the kitchen, used to the other man's difficulty in expressing gratitude. "You're welcome," he said over his shoulder. Once in the kitchen he started taking the fruit out of the bag and putting it in the bowl sitting on the counter. He heard the TV click on in the living room and knew Sephiroth was watching the evening news. He always watched it and Cloud thought it might be his way of trying to catch up with the world.

 _~It's got to be hard for him, waking up to find the world changed, learning that nearly everything he thought he knew about himself was wrong, living here as a virtual prisoner, hardly getting out to do anything he could enjoy…~_ Cloud's pitying thoughts continued as he put the apples away, and he was struck with a sudden inspiration. There was one thing he _knew_ Sephiroth enjoyed and the man's strength had returned enough to do it. Cloud's heart pounded as he considered it, wondering whether or not it was a good idea. Deciding that even if he couldn't fully trust Sephiroth the chip would prevent any serious harm, Cloud made up his mind and returned to the living room.

Cloud opened his mouth to make his proposal but a knock at the door interrupted him. Irritated, he opened the door to find the delivery guys from the furniture store waiting with the bed he'd bought earlier that day. He'd forgotten all about it. He waved them in and Sephiroth watched with a puzzled frown as they carried the pieces of the bed into the spare room as Cloud instructed.

"What's this?" Sephiroth asked as he followed and watched them put the bed together.

"I bought you a little something besides apples today," Cloud said lightly. "you shouldn't have to sleep on the couch all the time."

Sephiroth stared at the blonde, annoyed by his generosity and friendly smile. He was beginning to resent Cloud simply for making it so hard to resent him. Sephiroth frowned and blinked, wondering if that even made any sense. Shaking himself out of the confusing thoughts, he asked; "How much do I owe you?"

There it was…that kicked puppy look. "Not a thing," Cloud said stubbornly. "Look, you've already paid half of the water bill, half of the grocery bill and you refused to let me pitch in on your clothes. It's a gift. I feel bad enough already without you treating everything I try to do for you like a debt."

Sephiroth matched his stubborn stare for a little while, then finally sighed and nodded. "If it's that important to you, I won't argue. I…appreciate it."

Cloud's expression lit up and Sephiroth groaned inwardly at how easy it was to please him. He didn't know whether it made him want to throttle him or kiss him. Maybe it made him want to throttle him _because_ it made him want to kiss him. Sephiroth frowned again, wondering how Strife kept inspiring such conflicting thoughts and feelings.

Once the bed was put together and the deliverymen left, Sephiroth put the sheets, pillow and comforter that came with it on.

"Do you like it?" Cloud asked as the taller man sat on the bed experimentally. Sephiroth nodded, looking at him with something like gratitude in his green eyes.

"Good," Cloud said. "Now that we've established that, there's something I want to ask you."

Sephiroth regarded him warily.

"It's nothing bad," Cloud chuckled. "I just realized that you've been cooped up here for all this time. You hardly get out. There's an abandoned factory just outside of town off the highway and I thought it looked like a good place to duel. Are you up for it?"

For the first time in weeks, Sephiroth smiled.

It sent a thrill through Cloud's body and he honestly couldn't tell whether it was a thrill of excitement or fear.

 _~Too late to change my mind now.~_

* * *

Anyone watching the two men sparring would have thought they were trying to kill each other. Sephiroth had informed Cloud from the beginning that if they did this, he wasn't going to hold back. He gave the blonde the choice to back out but Cloud refused.

"Fuck," Cloud yelped as he dodged another falling smoke column. Sephiroth didn't seem to be playing around; he was slicing through structures with devastating accuracy, using the environment against him to keep him busy. The crash produced another cloud of dust, making it hard for the blonde to spot his opponent.

Sephiroth was suddenly flying at him through the dust and Cloud brought his sword up just in time to deflect the masamune. The impact was brutal enough to make his feet skid on the pavement but Cloud held his balance and stared into Sephiroth's narrowed green eyes.

"Close, but no cigar," the blonde coughed.

Sephiroth smiled.

Cloud sensed the reverse swing coming and he dodged aside and retaliated. Sephiroth ducked the blow and made a sweeping kick, which Cloud hopped over. Their weapons met and threw sparks again and again. After a while, Cloud began to realize that the reason Sephiroth wasn't holding back was only because he respected his ability to defend against his attacks. He saw it in the taller man's eyes when their blade's locked and in the way he'd give him a quick nod of approval when he did something impressive.

Cloud began to enjoy himself. His main intention in doing this was for Sephiroth. Truthfully he'd been wary of it, fearing that the other man would take things too far and it would get ugly. Now he knew that he could trust Sephiroth not to cross the line. The general came at him again in a downward sweep and Cloud had to think fast. He popped the release on the First Sword and produced one of the hidden blades, then crossed both weapons over his head to block the masamune.

Sephiroth raised an eyebrow and gave Cloud the first verbal compliment he'd uttered in the fight. "Impressive."

"Thanks," Cloud grunted, kicking out with his boot. He caught the other man's leg and made it buckle, throwing him off balance while he countered. Sephiroth rolled aside and came to his feet, slashing at Cloud's duel-wielded attack. For a few moments, the silver-haired man was put on the defensive. Cloud was coming at him with a flurry of blades, giving him no option but to block. Any smug feelings the blonde might have had were stolen away when Sephiroth suddenly bunched powerful leg muscles and leapt into the air, somersaulting over his head. Cloud spun around to face him but Sephiroth swept his feet out from under him with a kick before he could attack.

Cloud landed flat on his back with the wind knocked out of him. He somehow managed to hold onto his swords but before he could gather his bearings and raise them, Sephiroth caught his wrists in a vice-like grip and pinned him down. Cloud bucked to try to dislodge the hold and Sephiroth's hard body came down on him, pressing firmly. Cloud went still with shocked awareness as Sephiroth's lean hips settled between his thighs. He stared up into his opponent's emerald eyes, ceasing his struggles. Sephiroth's mouth was only a hand's breath away from his as he smiled down at him with satisfied triumph.

"So Cloud…do you yield?" Sephiroth purred.

 _~Oh god, he doesn't hear the double meaning of that question,~_ the blonde thought.

Cloud had fantasized about being in this very position more times than he could count. The only difference between his fantasies and the current reality was that they were clothed. His baser instincts got the better of him and he raised his knees and parted his thighs a bit further, nearly groaning with arousal as the other man's pelvis pressed more firmly against his groin. He stared at Sephiroth and moistened his lips. "I yield," he whispered, fighting the urge to flex his hips and grind his swelling arousal against the man.

Sephiroth's features relaxed and the glow in his eyes became softer. After seconds ticked by, Cloud wondered what he was thinking. He hadn't released him yet and he stared at him silently. The blonde didn't strain against his hold, relishing the intimacy of the contact even as he balked at how horny it was making him to be restrained like this.

 _~If he were any other man I'd think he was getting ready to start kissing me and tearing my clothes off,~_ Cloud thought with confusion, seeing the possessive light in Sephiroth's eyes. Contrary to the desire that the blonde thought he could see lurking in the man's expression, he hadn't gotten hard. Another man in his position and wearing his expression would have had a stiffy by now and probably would have been grinding it against Cloud suggestively.

Sephiroth finally gave him one of those beautiful, sexy half-smiles before lowering his mouth to Cloud's ear and whispering, "Good boy."

Cloud's eyes unfocused and his eyelids fluttered shut as his prick bucked in response. He knew Sephiroth could feel the reactions he was invoking and he was starting to think he did it on purpose. Too much more and Cloud feared that he'd shame himself and come in his pants, without Sephiroth ever having to touch him down there.

Sephiroth finally released his wrists and smoothly got up, offering a hand of assistance to Cloud. The blonde snapped his sword back together and took the proffered hand, rising to his feet with a flush in his pale cheeks. "Good fight," he said, trying to get his mind off of how mind-blowingly hot the end of it had been. He didn't even care that he'd lost. It _was_ a good fight, not just because it had been such an intense workout and a challenge, but also because for once, it wasn't conducted with intentions to kill or maim.

Sephiroth nodded in agreement and gave him a little smile. "It was. You almost got away from me. I underestimated how limber you are."

Cloud laughed softly, taking it as a compliment. "Well, you're stronger than I am. I couldn't move once you pinned me down." He flushed harder and slumped a little to try and hide his erection as the other man glanced at him sidelong and smiled knowingly.

 _~Part of you moved, Strife,~_ Sephiroth silently responded, though he didn't allow his eyes to drop to said part out of courtesy. _~Part of you strained against me even after the rest of your body relaxed. If I had been able to, I think I would have taken you right there on the factory floor.~_

While musings of what it would be like to dominate someone sexually weren't entirely foreign to Sephiroth, it was the first time he felt serious frustration at his inability to do so. Cloud had been begging for it and he couldn't even get hard as a result, let alone oblige him. Sephiroth had never missed what he'd never had before until that moment. He had no idea what it felt like to have an erection and he could only surmise by his memories of Zackary's shuddering gasps and moans that to push it inside of someone must be extremely gratifying.

Sephiroth's musing wasn't lost on Cloud. He saw the darkening expression on the other man's face and could only guess at what was going through his mind. Wishing he could wipe that frown off the other man's face, Cloud secured his weapon on his back and said; "I guess we should be getting back. The sun's setting and I've got fish thawing for supper."

Sephiroth nodded and together, they began to walk out of the factory. As they passed by one of the buildings they had been fighting near earlier, a pipe that hadn't been quite severed broke away from the wall suddenly and started falling toward Cloud. The blonde was so preoccupied that he was slow to react, and he realized he was going to get an injury out of this no matter what.

Sephiroth was suddenly at his side, flinging his arm up and catching the pipe before it finished its descent. Cloud was half-crouched, staring at the object and the man that had stopped it from hitting him. Again, Sephiroth's face was close to his own and again, the silver-haired man smiled crookedly.

"Watch your head, Cloud." For a wild moment their eyes locked. Then Sephiroth heaved the pipe away and continued on. Cloud followed with a dumbstruck expression and a racing pulse.

 _~He could have let it hit me,~_ realized Cloud as he stared at the general's back, _~the chip doesn't force him to protect me. He could have let that pipe brain me on the chance that it could kill me, damage my chip or put me into a coma…and then he would have been free.~_

He could have, but he didn't. Sephiroth chose to protect him, even though it meant giving up a chance for freedom. Cloud's heart thundered for a different reason now. Was it instinct or choice that made Sephiroth look out for him like that? He knew the man would never tell him even if he asked.

* * *

As they started home on Fenrir, Sephiroth thought about his reaction to the danger he'd seen Cloud in. There had been no time to think…only to react…and Cloud was so preoccupied he didn't realize the danger until it would have been too late. There had been a shock of unexpected fear in Sephiroth's gut, followed by a protective urge too strong to ignore. He was aware even as he stopped the pipe that fate had given him a chance to break his chains, but he declined it. The price might have been worth the freedom a few weeks ago, but not anymore.

He _liked_ Cloud. The impulsive blonde was a continuous source of amusement and comfort to him, even though he was also his captor. As soon as he admitted it, Sephiroth felt a curious weight lift. He hated the constraints he was living under but they were really nothing new to him. He was confident that some day he would find a way to break free, but he wouldn't do so at the expense of the only living person he felt anything for.

With that realization came a desire to do something…nice…for the other man. Sephiroth's condition hadn't stopped him from learning a few…interesting…tricks. He smiled slyly and relaxed his hold on Cloud's waist to move his hands to different areas.

Cloud felt Sephiroth's hands slide lower on his waist but he assumed it was just to get a more secure grip. He frowned with confusion as the man's gloved hands settled on his thighs and stroked them. His eyes went wide behind the goggles and his confusion grew as the hands slid down and their stroking moved to his inner thighs, very close to his crotch. His eyes practically bugged out when one of them cupped his groin and squeezed it briefly before rubbing it through the jeans, while the other hand crept back up and deftly burrowed under his shirt.

"What the hell?" Cloud gasped, struggling to keep his concentration on his driving. "Sephiroth, what are you doing?"

The other man didn't answer him and Cloud shifted in his seat and bit back a moan as he hardened under the massage. The hand up his shirt stroked leisurely, the leather of the glove feeling sensual against his skin. He felt Sephiroth's lips against the back of his neck, kissing and nibbling teasingly.

 _~Ohshitohmygodhe'sreallydoingthisandwe'regonnacrash~_

Cloud's thoughts were a panicked jumble in his head and his body twitched involuntarily as Sephiroth found his right nipple and gave it a tingling squeeze before rubbing it. Cloud's mouth fell open and his eyes started to glaze with pleasure as Sephiroth firmly rubbed the length of his erection through the jeans. He couldn't pry the man's hands away because he had to steer the bike and he wasn't sure he wanted to stop him anyway. Cloud instinctively pushed against his companion's rubbing hand even as he hollered that he was insane.

"I c-can't concentrate with you doing this!" Cloud shouted desperately.

"Then pull over somewhere," Sephiroth suggested into his ear, licking the rim.

Cloud nearly lost control of the bike and he swore. He saw a stretch of trees off the side of the road to the right and he eased Fenrir off of the highway and made for them. His intention was to get the bike safely stopped and demand that Sephiroth cut it out. He was bewildered and confused by the man's unexpected actions, especially since he knew Sephiroth couldn't be doing it because he was horny.

Once they were safely behind the trees and sheltered from view, Cloud dropped the kickstand and cut the engine. "Sephiroth," he gasped, "stop it!"

Sephiroth smiled against his neck and continued to steadily rub his crotch. "You clearly don't mean that, Cloud."

The blonde's eyes unfocused helplessly with pleasure and he turned his head to bark the order again. Sephiroth's mouth met his and muffled his protest, the tongue snaking in to thrust and explore. Cloud moaned and started to pull away but Sephiroth yanked his hand out from under his shirt and gripped the blonde's jaw to hold him still.

Cloud's desire began to take over and he reciprocated the kiss, sucking on the other man's invading tongue and caressing it with his own. Sephiroth was an amazing kisser, so suggestive and sensual with the motions of his lips and tongue that it felt almost to Cloud like he was fucking his mouth.

Cloud regained some of his senses as his fly was pulled down. "Mmmph…wait," he begged against the other man's mouth.

"I don't feel like complying with that order, Cloud." Sephiroth murmured as he freed the blonde's stiff sex from his jeans. Suddenly and smoothly, the general got off of the bike and Cloud fell backwards, unprepared for the abrupt lack of support against his back. The next thing Cloud knew he was laying back on his motorcycle with his legs dangling over the sides and Sephiroth looming over him. The silver-haired man had pulled his goggles off at some point during the incident and his green eyes flashed in a predatory fashion.

"Wha—" Cloud gasped.

Sephiroth smiled wickedly at him for a moment and then he lowered his head to Cloud's exposed cock. The blonde tensed all over and stared blankly at the canopy as he felt his sex drawn into Sephiroth's hot mouth.

"Oh god," Cloud moaned, clutching Sephiroth's left shoulder. The general's tongue swirled around and around the sensitive urethra opening, sending shocks of sensation up and down Cloud's spine. He did it until the blonde was trembling convulsively and whimpering before progressing to another technique. His head bobbed up and down as he began to take Cloud in and out of his mouth, pausing each time he reached the tip to tease the head with his tongue.

Cloud's other hand reached out blindly for something, anything to grab onto. It plunged into a nearby bush and he convulsively grabbed a handful of leaves, tossing them mindlessly as Sephiroth's ministrations gave him greater and greater pleasure. The silver-haired man seemed to know when Cloud was getting close to his peak, because each time he'd stop moving his mouth and just hold him inside while squeezing the base of his dick, waiting for him to calm down before continuing. He held Cloud's hips still as he took his time sucking him and a fine sheen of perspiration broke out on the blonde's skin as the pleasure grew and receded alternately. Finally, Sephiroth stopped giving him breathers and kept a steady rhythm.

"Sephiroth," Cloud groaned, releasing the other man's shoulder to stroke his soft hair, "feels so good…ah…ah…Seph…I-I'm gonna come…I'm coming…"

Cloud tossed his head and bit his lip as Sephiroth sucked him hard into his mouth to the hilt, working his throat muscles. His hand cupped his balls and squeezed firmly and rhythmically and Cloud's shoulders lifted off Fenrir's seat with the force of his orgasm. His neck arched and his throat worked as he cried the general's name and grabbed his shoulder again for support.

"H-holy shit," Cloud exclaimed raggedly, raising his hips as his companion swallowed his come, continuing to suck until the spasms ended. He panted dazedly, spent and bewildered from the pleasure. Sephiroth skillfully and gently tucked his sated genitals back into his underwear before zipping his fly back up. He gazed down at Cloud with smug satisfaction, evidently pleased with the outcome of his unexpected playing.

"Why…why did you do that?" Cloud asked him when he found the breath to do so.

"Because I wanted to, Cloud," Sephiroth said simply. "Don't tell me you didn't want it."

Cloud shook his head and sat up, still panting heavily. "You already know I did," he answered, staring up at him with dazed blue eyes. "I just…I never knew that you…I didn't think you…"

"Wanted you?" Sephiroth supplied helpfully. Cloud blushed and nodded, lowering his eyes.

"Cloud, you can be really dense. My inability to get it up doesn't make me incapable of enjoying encounters."

Cloud stared at him with fascination. "What made you decide to do that? All this time I thought you were just trying to make me uncomfortable, maybe even mocking me for…for feeling the way I do."

Sephiroth smirked. "I was trying to avoid complications, if you must know. My desire to hear you moan my name got the better of me."

Cloud grinned bashfully and licked his lips. "Well, how did you like the way I moaned your name?"

Sephiroth leaned in and licked his jaw, making the blonde shiver. "Very likeable," he purred.

* * *

-To be continued


	10. The mighty have fallen Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 10

Cloud was flustered when they got home. He didn't know what to say to Sephiroth now, unsure of whether the man had given him the blowjob with casual intentions or something more. Sephiroth didn't seem to share his discomfort and he didn't say anything about the incident. The silver-haired man had mentioned his impotency casually earlier, though Cloud couldn't remember ever having said anything to let on that he knew about it. Did Sephiroth mention it on purpose or did it just slip out?

Determined not to let it turn him into a confused wreck, Cloud got started on preparing and cooking the fish. Sephiroth helped with the meal by preparing the side veggies, keeping his thoughts to himself.

Sephiroth noticed Cloud's blushing, sidelong glances at him but he waited, giving the young man time to adjust to what he'd done to him and think about how he felt about it. He hid a frown as he sensed anxiety from the blonde. Perhaps he made a mistake in allowing his curiosity to get the better of him. It was possible that though Cloud cared for him, he wasn't willing or able to deal with his sexual handicap. Maybe Cloud needed more than he could give him, or perhaps he still had old feelings conflicting with his attraction.

Cloud was unaware that Sephiroth was brooding over the encounter as well. To him the man seemed as cool as a cucumber, hardly affected.

 _~Why should he be affected by it?~_ thought Cloud miserably, _~He didn't get off on it and he doesn't have a libido pushing him to do things like that. He said himself that he did it because he wanted to hear me moan. Maybe now that his curiosity's been satisfied he's over it.~_

They finished cooking and ate together in silence, which in itself wasn't an unusual thing but it seemed awkward to Cloud after what had happened on the way home. He kept looking at Sephiroth from beneath lowered lashes, trying to read something in the man's expression that could give him a clue of what to say or do. It was his turn to wash the dishes and Cloud was almost thankful when they both finished and he could concentrate on that. He expected Sephiroth to go into the living room and watch the evening news.

Sephiroth started to do just that, but he paused and looked at Cloud, whose head was bowed as he washed the dishes.

 _~Fuck it.~_

Cloud froze, the plate in his hand forgotten, as Sephiroth's large, long-fingered hands settled on his shoulders and his breath fanned the fine hairs at the nape of his neck. He swallowed as he felt the general press up against him from behind.

"You didn't seem surprised when I mentioned my affliction, Cloud," Sephiroth's deep, droning voice murmured in his ear. "I assumed that you already knew about it but I'm beginning to wonder if you chose not to hear it."

"I knew," Cloud answered, relieved that at least one of his questions concerning the encounter was being answered. "When you were…sick…the doctor told me about the affects of the drugs Hojo had you on and that was one of the things he mentioned."

"I see." Sephiroth might as well have been talking about the weather; he was so blasé about his problem.

Cloud let the dish fall back into the water and turned around to face the taller man. "Doesn't it bother you? I mean, you talk about it like it's no big deal and—"

" _Is_ it a big deal, Cloud?" Sephiroth tilted his head and searched his face.

"Well, most other men in your situation would think so," Cloud answered truthfully. "You talk about it like it's nothing, though."

Sephiroth sighed and looked at the ceiling. "Cloud, can someone who's been blind their entire life miss being able to see?" It was a logical question, meant to make the blonde use his sense of reason and stop feeling so much pity for him. When Sephiroth lowered his eyes to Cloud again he could see by the stricken look on his face that it had the opposite affect.

"That evil, twisted, sadistic piece of fucking shit," Cloud ranted, his blue eyes glaring and his golden brows drawn down. "Not once? He never let you experience even a minute of…goddammit, we killed him too fucking slow!"

Sephiroth was taken aback by the young man's fury and he was momentarily speechless. Sex had always been something he'd considered an unnecessary distraction except for breeding purposes. That's what he'd had drilled into his head since childhood, at any rate. It wasn't until Zackary befriended him and relentlessly pursued him that he'd started to see a new side of it and even then, he was content to enjoy stolen moments of intimacy without having the desire ruling his thoughts.

Cloud was still ranting on, calling Hojo every filthy name in the book and inventing a few more on the way. His lithe body was trembling with his rage and he looked like he was ready to start foaming at the mouth soon.

 _~I can't make Cloud understand, just as I could never make Zackary understand. They both know what they'd be missing if they were in my place.~_

Instead of wasting his time in a futile attempt to make Cloud understand that the tragedy of the situation was lost on him, Sephiroth put his hands on the blonde's waist and commanded firmly; "Cloud, shut up."

The blonde's tirade abruptly stopped and he stared at Sephiroth with bewildered sapphire eyes. Sephiroth smiled a little and brought his left hand up from his waist to trace Cloud's jaw with his fingers. "My purpose in bringing the subject up wasn't to throw a pity party for myself. I don't like to waste my time and I want to know if what I can give you is enough. I can do everything except what you seem to want the most. Take some time to think about it if you need to but until you give me a direct answer, I'm not touching you intimately again."

Cloud felt the color drain from his face with that ultimatum. Now that he knew Sephiroth reciprocated his interest, if not his feelings, the only thing he could imagine worse than never feeling the general thrusting inside of him was never experiencing any kisses or intimacy with him at all. "It's enough," Cloud said quickly.

Sephiroth's handsome features appeared doubtful. "You answered that quickly, Strife. Are you certain?"

Cloud nodded convulsively and his arms went around the taller man's waist. "I mean it. Whatever I can have of you is enough." _~Damn, do I sound desperate enough? Why can't I play it a little cooler?~_

Sephiroth's expression relaxed and he combed his fingers through Cloud's soft, spiked hair. "I'm going to hold you to your word, Cloud."

* * *

It felt strange to be cuddled up to Sephiroth on the couch, watching the archeology channel. At the same time, it felt wonderful. They shared a bowl of popcorn and Sephiroth's arm was around Cloud's shoulders, the hand caressing the blonde's arm familiarly. Cloud's head rested against the silver-haired man's shoulder. Cloud didn't want it to end, but as with all good things, it had to some time. It was getting late and he had a delivery run to make in the morning. He intended to ask Sephiroth to sleep in his bed with him from now on, but first he wanted some goodnight kisses.

He turned his head and kissed Sephiroth's neck, boldly slipping his hand into the other man's shirt and caressing his velvety chest. Sephiroth turned his head and captured Cloud's mouth with his, kissing him slowly and languidly. His tongue brushed back and forth over Cloud's lips and the blonde complied with the silent command and parted them to allow entrance.

Sephiroth plundered the young man's mouth with patient authority, making Cloud breathless and aroused. He allowed the blonde to unbutton his shirt and explore his chest, while he dropped the hand that had been rubbing Cloud's arm down to cup his hip and curve around to squeeze his bottom. Cloud started to kiss Sephiroth aggressively as his fingers glided over one of the taller man's nipples and made it pebble. He stimulated the bud, drawing a murmur of pleasure from Sephiroth. Feeling a thrill of excitement and wonder at the response, Cloud pulled his mouth away from Sephiroth's and dragged it to his neck and collarbone.

 _~I can't stand it…I've got to get my mouth on that chest!~_

He worried that Sephiroth would stop him as he traced the shallow valley between his pectorals with his tongue, but he allowed it. Cloud kissed and licked the smooth skin while running his hands over the muscles. He took one nipple into his mouth and flicked his tongue over it while pinching and rubbing the other on with his fingers. Sephiroth made another one of those pleased sounds and squeezed his ass, prompting Cloud to further boldness.

"God I love your chest," Cloud murmured between kisses and suckles.

"You've made that abundantly clear," Sephiroth remarked dryly. His voice was a tad breathless and Cloud felt a thrill of delight with the knowledge that his kisses and touches were bringing pleasure. It made him wonder if the taller man would also react favorably to having his cock massaged, even if it wouldn't harden as a result.

Cloud kept stroking and teasing the general's chest with his hands but he paused with his kissing. He looked into Sephiroth's slit-pupiled eyes and licked his lips as he tried to think of how to ask permission to touch him where he wanted to.

Sephiroth stared back, his eyes catching the sight of Cloud's pink tongue swiping his soft, appealing lips. Sephiroth found that he couldn't look away from the blonde's mouth as he struggled to say something.

 _~You really do have a well-shaped pair of lips, Cloud. Gaia, but they're tempting.~_

Sephiroth waited silently for Cloud to say whatever it was he was trying to say, enjoying watching that shapely mouth work.

"Sephiroth, is this okay?" Cloud finally whispered, daring to let one hand slip down between his legs.

Sephiroth almost said no, but Cloud's sapphire eyes were so passionate and hopeful that he felt compelled to let him. He nodded slowly but reminded Cloud in a whisper; "Remember what we talked about earlier. Don't expect anything more than I can give, Cloud."

Cloud smiled gratefully, his eyes lighting up. "I know. I just want to touch it. I promise I'll stop if you don't like it."

Sephiroth impulsively grinned when Cloud lowered his eyes and eagerly started to unzip his jeans. Try as he might, he couldn't deny how endearing it was when Cloud smiled that way. He stroked his back and tried to relax as he opened his jeans and deftly reached in. Sephiroth's eyes drifted shut when his companion's fingers wrapped around his sex and eased it out of his briefs. There was a pause and Sephiroth cracked his eyes open warily.

Cloud didn't have an expression of disappointment on his face as Sephiroth feared he might. Instead, the blonde's wide blue eyes were full of wonder and admiration as they looked at the organ he was fondling. Sephiroth remembered seeing a similar look in Zackary's eyes and feeling a similar surge of relief.

"Damn, you're big," Cloud murmured, licking his lips again. His blue eyes met Sephiroth's and he smiled. "I mean, you're bigger soft than most guys are when they're hard." His hand gently stroked the soft member and Sephiroth appreciated the sensation, allowing his eyes to drift shut again.

"It's beautiful, Sephiroth."

The general's eyes opened again to regard Cloud with surprise. While he'd gotten compliments on his size before he'd never been told it was "beautiful". Then again most of the compliments came in the form of overheard whispers in the locker room uttered by straight men that wouldn't dream of calling anyone's cock "beautiful".

"It isn't as though you've never seen it before, Cloud." Sephiroth smirked.

"Yeah well, I didn't have the luxury of giving it a good look, those times. I was too busy being embarrassed."

Sephiroth chuckled and stroked the blonde's feathery hair. "Strange how you aren't blushing now." His voice was husky with lazy pleasure as Cloud massaged and caressed him.

Cloud was too captivated to be embarrassed right now. He combed the fingers of his other hand through the lustrous patch of silver hair framing Sephiroth's genitals and traced the trail leading from it to his belly button. He circled the navel with one fingertip, then impulsively leaned forward to kiss around it. His other hand didn't cease its gentle fondling of Sephiroth's penis while he placed soft kisses around his belly button.

 _~I love you,~_ Cloud thought, afraid to say it aloud but unable to stop saying it in his heart. Sephiroth's skin was like silk against his lips and hands. He was amazed that the man was allowing him to get away with taking so many liberties, but maybe it was one of the ways Sephiroth made up for being unable to top him in intercourse. Cloud didn't know if that meant they'd never have sex or not. He'd always taken on the role of the receiver and had no experience as the giver. While the thought of Sephiroth spread out and positioned for it was arousing, it seemed…abnormal. It didn't fit his nature any more than being the aggressor fit Cloud's.

Deciding that it wasn't important right now, Cloud enjoyed the taste and feel of Sephiroth's body, kissing his way back up from the man's navel to his chest, neck and lips. He unconsciously whimpered as Sephiroth's tongue plunged into his mouth again in that suggestive way that made his whole body throb with need.

He gasped softly in surprise as the taller man cupped his straining bulge without warning, but he didn't protest. "Sephiroth," he sighed against the other's lips, rubbing himself against the hand that fondled him. The bliss of his touch didn't interfere with Cloud's caressing massage of his genitals. The blonde continued to stroke and pet Sephiroth's long shaft even when the silver-haired man unzipped his jeans and eased his erection out.

Cloud climbed onto Sephiroth's lap, never ceasing his explorations as he straddled him. He held Sephiroth's bright eyes with his own and moved against him as the taller man squeezed and stroked his stiff cock.

Sephiroth found himself trapped in the sapphire eyes, amazed that Cloud could be this sensual and bold. The blonde's lips were parted and a pretty flush of passion colored his cheeks. Wisps of golden hair fell partially over his eyes but he didn't seem to notice. He licked his lips and moaned, the blue eyes closing momentarily with pleasure as Sephiroth circled the tip of his sex with the pad of his thumb. Cloud really did remind Sephiroth of a doll at times—he was so pretty.

"Sephiroth," Cloud whimpered urgently as the mutual fondling continued. His pale brows were furrowed and his breath was coming fast and hard. His tongue once again swiped his lips and Sephiroth growled and kissed him, nibbling the bottom lip before thrusting his tongue in. He swore he felt a tingle in his groin but he thought it was just a result of Cloud's tender ministrations. He ravished the blonde's mouth, compelled to dominate it for reasons he couldn't explain.

 _~It's those fucking lips of his…it must be. Strife drives me to distraction with that teasing lip-licking he keeps doing.~_

Cloud moaned into his mouth and began to pant, provoking Sephiroth to jerk him off hard and fast. The blonde's eyes opened wide and he writhed against him, whimpering and shuddering helplessly as Sephiroth stroked his tender organ to the brink.

Sephiroth broke the kiss and held Cloud's eyes. "Say my name, Cloud," he demanded huskily.

The climax approached and Cloud couldn't have refused him if he tried. "Sephiroth…it's…so…good!" Cloud's expression was something between pain and ecstasy as his captive member bucked in Sephiroth's hand and spurted its seed. His breath shuddered and he finally released Sephiroth's manhood so that he could put his arms around his neck for support. "Do you…have to be…the best at…everything you do?" Cloud panted, resting his head on Sephiroth's shoulder.

Sephiroth laughed before he could stop himself. "Only the things that really matter, Cloud."

Cloud smiled against the general's shoulder and kissed it, sighing with the afterglow. Sephiroth's hands began to stroke his back and he closed his eyes in contentment. "I don't want to move," he mumbled.

"We're going to have to eventually," Sephiroth said with amusement. "Look at the mess you've made."

"Your fault," Cloud murmured sleepily.

"Oh, then you object to getting—"

"No," Cloud interrupted quickly, raising his head to look at him. "I don't object."

Sephiroth smirked. "I didn't think so."

Cloud remembered what he'd meant to ask him earlier, before things got carried away. "You can sleep in my bed from now on if you want…with me."

Sephiroth seemed to consider the offer. "Doesn't that defeat the purpose of your buying a bed for me?"

Cloud shrugged. "I didn't really see this coming when I bought it. You never know, someone might come to visit sometime and now they'll have a bed to sleep in."

Sephiroth grimaced slightly. "I doubt your friends will want to visit with me around."

"They'll come around eventually," Cloud said with confidence. "You never actually did anything to any of them except for…" He trailed off uncomfortably.

"Tifa, and you." Sephiroth finished with a sigh. "I can't change the past. I can't even guarantee my stability in the present, if part of Jenova is still out there."

Cloud didn't want to think about that right now. Things had finally started to pan out in a positive light and the evening was going perfect until conversation went back to Nibelheim. He thought Sephiroth regretted what he did and when it happened he was out of his mind in the first place. For now Cloud only wanted to bask in the pleasure of having something that he'd pined for since he was a teenager but never thought he could get.

"We can worry about all of that later," Cloud insisted as he combed his fingers through the silk of Sephiroth's hair. "Will you just agree to share my bed with me so we can get some sleep?"

"You don't talk in your sleep, do you? I know you don't snore." Sephiroth inquired.

Cloud shrugged. "If I do, nobody's ever told me."

"Fair enough," Sephiroth nodded. "I should warn you though, I tend to sprawl."

Cloud grinned. "Then I'll just sleep on top of you."

* * *

-To be continued


	11. The mighty have fallen Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 11

Cloud grumbled as he was rudely dragged out of the comfort of sleep by the loud, continuous beeps of his phone alarm. Awareness returned and with it, the realization that his head was resting against a firm, naked chest. He opened his eyes and stared at the smooth expanse his cheek was pressed against, memories of yesterday making his body sing with joy. He would have stayed like that for as long as he could if he weren't worried that the alarm would wake his companion. He blindly reached out for the nightstand and found the phone, bringing it before his eyes to turn off the alarm. Once the beeping stopped he dropped the phone on top of the covers and sighed, nuzzling Sephiroth's chest.

He stayed like that for a little while and captured a lock of the other man's silver hair, admiring its shine in the morning light. With a regretful sigh, he finally propped himself up on one arm and prepared to get out of bed and get himself woken up for his delivery trip. He paused to admire Sephiroth before getting out of bed and he nearly yelped in surprise to find the man's emerald, slit-pupiled eyes open and watching him lazily.

"I thought you'd never wake up, Strife." The general's mouth was curved in a teasing smirk. "Now I know why you were so often late for morning drills. You could sleep through an earthquake, I imagine."

Cloud grinned with self-depreciation and shrugged. "Sorry about that. How long was it going off before I woke up?"

"A good five minutes, at least."

"Well, why didn't you nudge me or something?" Cloud asked.

Sephiroth's long fingers stroked the blonde's shoulder, provoking a shiver of pleasure in his body. "You told me last night that you always set your alarm to give you a couple of hours time to wake, shower and eat before you get on the road. I didn't see the harm in letting you be for a while." The caressing hand traveled up his neck to his jaw, cupping and pulling gently in a silent demand.

Cloud complied and lowered his mouth to Sephiroth's, parting his lips invitingly when the other man's tongue languidly stroked them. Cloud already had morning wood and the leisurely, sensual kiss only served to make it worse. He didn't say anything or make any moves to try and initiate more than a good morning kiss, understanding that Sephiroth's desires weren't as easily roused as his and not wanting him to think he expected a blow job or a hand job every time they kissed.

Sephiroth felt the blonde's arousal against his thigh and he smiled against his lips, pausing the kiss to murmur: "Is that all you think about, Cloud?"

Cloud pulled away and blushed, regarding him with guilty blue eyes. "I'm a twenty-five year old man. You may as well ask if the sky is blue."

Sephiroth laughed softly at that. "My mistake. I keep forgetting that little detail about other men. Don't be embarrassed, Cloud."

Suddenly, Cloud wasn't embarrassed; he was enchanted. Sephiroth's soft, deep laughter was something new to him. The most he was used to hearing from the man was a reserved chuckle here and there.

 _~I've never heard him laugh like that before. It's…sexy.~_

Compelled by appreciation and wonder, Cloud kissed him again with aching tenderness. "I want to hear you do that more often," he whispered against his lips.

Sephiroth sobered and combed his fingers through the slighter man's soft, feathered spikes. "It was just a laugh, Cloud. There's no need to get emotional over it."

"I know, but it's the first time I've ever heard one from you. I liked it."

Sephiroth traced his lips with his fingertips. "Then I suppose I'll have to do it more often, won't I?"

* * *

After exchanging a few more unhurried kisses, Cloud got out of bed and selected a warm outfit comprised of black, reinforced leather pants and a burgundy turtleneck sweater. He told Sephiroth that he could go back to sleep if he wanted to (careful not to make the statement as an order so that he wouldn't inadvertently force him) and then took his change of clothes with him to the bathroom. He heard Sephiroth laugh softly again as he sprinted over the cold floor as quickly as he could.

"It's cold!" He said over his shoulder defensively before disappearing into the bathroom. Once inside, he grabbed the box of matches sitting on the shelf over the gas heater installed into the wall and carefully lit it up, shifting from foot to foot in the process. He hated cold mornings because his floors were all stone and wood. It made getting around barefoot an uncomfortable process. One of these days, he intended to put carpet down at least in some of the rooms.

Cloud twisted the "hot" shower tap on to let the water heat up while he undressed and he shivered as he removed his pj's. How Sephiroth could sleep in only a pair of sweatpants without getting cold was a mystery to him. By the time he removed his bottoms, the spraying water was giving off steam. He turned the "cold" tap with one hand while testing the temperature gingerly with the other until the water temperature was to his liking, then stepped into the tub and pulled the curtain shut.

He thought about his current situation while he started on his hair and he knew he was grinning like a moron. In all the long years of secretly dreaming of what it would be like to be the general's lover, he'd never imagined it would actually happen one day. It wasn't quite what he'd fantasized about but even with certain limitations it was still more than he'd ever hoped for. He reached for the shampoo and squeezed a little into his hand, then proceeded to lather it through his hair.

Cloud paused when he heard the bathroom door open, his pulse picking up. "Sephiroth?"

In response, the shower curtain was pulled open and Cloud blinked water out of his eyes. "Oh," he said breathlessly, his gaze traveling over Sephiroth's naked body.

Sephiroth hesitated long enough to enjoy the view of Cloud's wet, nude form. Yes, the blonde was definitely put together nicely. He smiled crookedly, taking note that the young man's hair was wet and half-lathered. "It makes more sense to shower together and conserve water, wouldn't you agree?"

Cloud's throat worked as he swallowed and nodded. His groin, which had finally started to soften, pulled taut again as Sephiroth stepped into the tub behind him with animal grace and pulled the curtain closed again. "Look at what you've done," Cloud complained when the other man pressed up against his back. He gasped when Sephiroth nibbled his ear.

"Mmm, have I caused some tension, Cloud?" The silver-haired man purred into his ear. "I'll have to remedy that before we finish. For now, however…" He skimmed his fingers over Cloud's ass, back and shoulders before pushing them into his soapy hair and massaging his scalp.

Cloud leaned against the taller man and closed his eyes, forgetting his momentary discomfort at the abrupt invasion of his privacy. "Feels good," he murmured. Sephiroth's strong fingers applied just the right amount of pressure as they worked the lather through his hair. It took Cloud a minute to comprehend him when he instructed him to turn around and lean his head back, but he did so and sighed as the warm water sprayed his scalp and Sephiroth's fingers combed through the hair to work all of the shampoo out of it.

With that done, the silver-haired man moved on to Cloud's body, soaping it up and massaging it along the way. The blond gasped when his companion's fingers briefly teased his nipples erect and he looked up to find Sephiroth gazing at him with calm appreciation. Unfortunately, the taller man's body wasn't reacting to the intimate bathing the way Cloud's was. His impressive shaft remained in repose even though his eyes were intense and sensual on him.

Sephiroth paused in the process of soaping Cloud's torso, noticing the faint scar to the left of his belly button. He frowned and traced it with his fingers, knowing that it was there because of him. He had a similar scar given to him by the blonde, but that didn't lessen the alien feeling of regret that pulsed in him. Seeing the curious look in the young man's blue eyes, Sephiroth decided to move on to more…interesting…areas, before Cloud could start questioning his reaction to the old wound.

"Be still, Cloud," Sephiroth chastised when the blonde yelped as he began to soap his genitals.

Cloud swallowed and tried to obey, amazed at how experienced the other man's touch was despite his sexual disadvantages. "Sephiroth, that's going to cause trouble," he warned softly in a trembling voice.

Sephiroth smiled at him and turned him around in his arms. "I should hope so," he murmured against Cloud's ear as his soapy hand gripped his erection and stroked it.

 _~Wow, this is…this is so hot…I never dreamed I'd be in this position,~_ Cloud thought dazedly as his companion steadily massaged his length, then did the same with his balls. He groaned softly and shifted with restless pleasure and lust, pushing back against Sephiroth's hard contours instinctively. The taller man's other hand was rubbing his ass slowly, working the soap over it and kissing his neck.

 _~He's gonna make me cream myself if he keeps this up,~_ Cloud thought distantly, breathing heavily with growing pleasure. Somewhere in his mind he wondered if Sephiroth was being so attentive and generous with giving him pleasure because he was trying to make up for the lack of intercourse, and the thought made Cloud feel a stab of guilt.

He was so distracted with growing thoughts of how unfair it was that he'd gotten so much sexual fulfillment so soon in the relationship when Sephiroth could get none, he didn't realize where the other man's hand was going on his backside. Cloud squeaked with sudden, shocked bewilderment as he felt one of Sephiroth's fingers ease gently into the tight ring of his entrance.

"S-Seph," Cloud grunted, surprise making him tense up.

"Relax, Cloud," The general purred into his ear, briefly stopping his fondling of his groin to put an arm around his waist and hold him steady. "I can give you this much, at least."

The quiet, gentle authority in Sephiroth's voice eased Cloud's tension and surprise. Resisting him or telling him to stop wasn't even a consideration in his mind—he'd just been unprepared. He trembled and concentrated on relaxing, not fighting the intrusion of his companion's penetrating finger. Sephiroth was evidently satisfied with his response, releasing his waist and resuming his massage of his erection.

Cloud turned his head and kissed Sephiroth on the mouth, panting softly as his finger slowly thrust in and out. He was surprised again when Sephiroth murmured: "Tell me if it's uncomfortable, Cloud," against his lips.

 _~He's really good…I never would have thought the great Sephiroth would be this generous and considerate. I figured he'd be the kind of guy that would just take what he wanted and to hell with how it felt to the other person.~_

Of course, he shouldn't have been surprised by now, knowing that the only satisfaction Sephiroth got out of these encounters was a sense of prideful accomplishment. Cloud tensed momentarily as another finger joined the penetration, but his partner skillfully eased his body into it so that it wasn't painful. Cloud began to move with the rhythmic thrusts, synchronizing his motions to increase the pleasure. He went still again and his blue eyes went wide as those fingers began to feel around inside of him, finding the lump of his prostate.

"Ahh…ah…that's…it's too much," Cloud cried as Sephiroth pressed firmly against the spot and rubbed it in a circular motion. His cock bucked and the general squeezed the base of it to deny orgasm. The fingers inside of him stopped massaging his gland for a moment and Sephiroth's lips brushed against his temple.

"Do you want me to stop, then?"

Cloud couldn't think through the throbbing sensations in his tender parts. "I…I don't know," he panted in confusion. He was no virgin but he'd never been with anyone that focused on just massaging that spot the way Sephiroth was doing it. They'd always fingered him before intercourse just to prepare him and the only prostate stimulation he was used to getting was when his partner's dick brushed against it during sex.

Sephiroth paid careful attention to Cloud's voice and body language, knowing from his own experience that sometimes, anal penetration could be uncomfortable in the beginning. He didn't know how prostate stimulation felt to a normal man but he remembered it feeling good enough in his case to distract from the stretching sensation. Experimentally, he rubbed the gland again, applying less pressure than before. Cloud shuddered in his arms and whimpered. Sephiroth smiled, convinced that the reaction was from pleasure and not discomfort.

"I think it's safe to continue, Cloud." He nibbled the blonde's ear and resumed, releasing the base of his sex to stroke up to the tip and rub the glans. Cloud bucked against him and Sephiroth almost scolded him, but he realized that it was involuntary when the young man braced his hands against the tiled wall and moaned. Sephiroth tried different techniques, alternating between stroking the length of his erection and rubbing the tip, while at the same time he alternately fucked him with his fingers and paused to rub the gland inside.

Cloud bit his lip and his face flushed with rising pleasure. He could no longer concentrate on anything save remaining upright as Sephiroth brought him to the edge, only to deny him ultimate release. He was moaning incoherently after several minutes of the sweet torture, finding himself trapped by his companion's hands and unable to control his instinctive humping. When he thrust forward, Sephiroth's hand squeezed and stroked his cock to the base. When he rocked away, his big, long fingers pushed firmly into him. The pressure built again and Cloud raggedly begged his companion for release.

"Not yet, Cloud. Behave and I'll consider it," Sephiroth said huskily. "Kiss me now."

Cloud had to remove his hands from the wall and lean back against the taller man's body to comply with the demand, relinquishing his support and relying on Sephiroth to brace him. The general proved more than capable of shifting his weight to support Cloud against him and the blonde turned his head to give him the kiss he'd ordered. He moaned shakenly against Sephiroth's mouth as the other man's tongue slid in and caressed his. The kiss was slow and intense, branding Cloud's mouth with the heat of possessive desire. He didn't know how much longer he could stand it, with Sephiroth's tongue dominating his and his hands steadily stroking, squeezing and pressing the most sensitive parts of his body.

"Please, Sephiroth…I'll do anything you want if you'll just…let me come!"

Satisfied with Cloud's submissive responses, Sephiroth broke the kiss and licked the blonde's lips with the tip of his tongue as he stroked his sex rapidly and rubbed his internal gland firmly. He smiled and nibbled the pretty, shapely lips as a loud, helpless moan burst from them. He reveled in the way Cloud's body arched against him with the sudden tension of release and he looked down at the organ he held to watch it buck and spurt.

"Very beautiful, Cloud," Sephiroth complimented as the young man panted against his lips and closed his eyes. "I enjoy seeing that expression on your face." He eased his fingers out of the young man's body and coaxed him forward to let the spray of the shower rinse the soap and sperm from his genitals. Cloud seemed dazed and Sephiroth chuckled. "Are you still in there, Strife?"

Cloud nodded and reached up and behind to put his arms around Sephiroth's neck as he finished rinsing his body off. "How can you be so good at this, when…you know."

Sephiroth was amused at Cloud's naivety. "I told you before, my erectile dysfunction didn't stop me from experimenting with intimacy. If anything I'd say it gave me cause to learn ways around it."

"You sure as hell did," Cloud sighed, shaking his head in amazement.

Sephiroth turned him around and gently rinsed his bottom, kissing him languidly as he did so. "There's more to sex than drilling someone with your dick," He murmured.

"You've proved that," Cloud agreed, blushing.

Sephiroth smirked.

* * *

It was a treat to return the favor and bathe Sephiroth's body. Cloud took it as slowly as possible, wanting to enjoy the feel of his lover's soap-slick skin against his hands for as long as he could. Having a weakness for Sephiroth's chest, he couldn't help himself and spent a few moments kissing and licking it after he'd rinsed the soap off. If Sephiroth didn't remind him in a softly amused tone that the hot water wasn't unlimited, Cloud might have spent all morning just worshipping his chest with his mouth.

"Sorry," Cloud grumbled in embarrassment, biting his lip. In truth he wasn't sorry but he realized he was acting like an obsessed sex addict.

He ended up with the same problem when his bathing brought him to the areas below Sephiroth's waist. He had him turn around and pull his hair over his shoulder so that he could soap off his back and buttocks. Cloud's sapphire eyes softened with admiration as he stared at his companion's firm, toned ass. His groin hardened again and he groaned softly. Possessed with desire and curiosity, the blond sank to his knees in the tub while lathering the soap in his hands.

Sephiroth was relaxed and quite enjoying Cloud's eager reciprocation. His calloused hands were skillful as they bathed his body and the soft, muttered comments of admiration he made without seeming to realize he was doing it were endearing. The silver-haired man closed his eyes and sighed with enjoyment as Cloud's hands worked the soap into the skin on the back of his thighs, just below his buttocks. He smirked with puzzled amusement when he felt the blonde's breath against his cheeks and he was about to tell Cloud that it wasn't necessary for him to get on his knees to bathe that part, when a totally unexpected sensation made the general jump with surprise and swear.

Cloud's little white teeth pinched Sephiroth's right butt cheek, hard enough to sting.

 _~What in the everloving fuck? Did Strife really just…bite me…on the ASS?~_

For a moment Sephiroth was too shocked to do more than stare at the wall with his jaw hanging open and his eyes wide.

"Uh," he heard Cloud say when the teeth withdrew.

"Just what in the hell _was_ that, Strife?" Sephiroth twisted around to regard the blonde, schooling his features into a stoic mask of curiosity to hide the utter bewilderment he felt.

Cloud was crouched at his feet, looking up at him with wide blue eyes and a comical expression of confusion on his fair features. His wet hair framed his face appealingly and his pretty mouth struggled with words. "Er…it was…it was right there in my face…"

"Because you knelt down in front of it," Sephiroth reasoned, his mouth twitching with the effort not to laugh.

"Well yeah, but…I mean…I wanted a closer look and…I don't know…it was just too tempting. I mean have you ever _seen_ your ass, Sephiroth?"

Sephiroth reached up with one hand to pinch his lips briefly to control a grin, then he coughed. "I can't say that I've ever given it a good look, Cloud. Given your claims that it wields the power to compel the viewer to bite it, that's probably a good thing. I can't imagine I would have gotten much work done."

Cloud burst into laughter and looked away. The mental image of Sephiroth gnawing on his own butt made him lose what was left of his composure. He regained control of himself with effort and looked up at the taller man again, who was still staring at him with an elegant brow lifted. "I'm sorry," he said with a bashful grin. "I guess I lost my head. Here, why don't you turn around and I'll get your front, then we can move on to your hair."

Sephiroth looked understandably wary. "You want me to present my genitals to your tender mercies after what you just did to my ass? Honestly Cloud, I'm not wildly in love with the possibility of becoming a eunuch in a more literal sense."

Cloud laughed again and shook his head. "I promise, I won't do anything like that." When Sephiroth didn't move, he sighed. "Come on Sephiroth, please trust me. I'll be honest with you; I have fantasies about your cock and my mouth, but biting isn't one of them. The only thing you'd risk feeling if I lost my head again would be my lips around your dick, okay?"

Sephiroth stared at the blonde, surprised by his raw honesty. Cloud was blushing but he was looking up at him earnestly. The silver warrior reached down and caressed his companion's jaw with his fingertips, traveling the line of it to his ear. He brushed his thumb over the silver earring piercing Cloud's left earlobe and examined the piece of jewelry as he considered it. The thought of those shapely lips around his cock was a pleasant one and he couldn't imagine objecting to it if that were the result of Cloud losing his head again.

"Fine," Sephiroth finally said. "If I feel teeth there's going to be hell to pay, Cloud."

"You won't," Cloud said with a chuckle. "I swear."

Sephiroth turned around fully and allowed him to finish bathing his legs and genitals. Cloud somehow controlled himself, cursing his libido for making him horny again so soon after his lover had given him release. He didn't want to seem selfish or demanding so he used all of his willpower to finish the task in a professional, if loving manner.

 _~I'm starting to wonder if I can even take it, if he's ever able to get hard,~_ Cloud thought as he washed and admired his companion's groin. Some men didn't grow much when they became erect but if Sephiroth did, he'd be hard to receive. _~It'll take a LOT of lube if he ever gets a stiffy and he grows much bigger than he already is.~_

The thought of taking Sephiroth inside of him made Cloud flush...not with embarrassment but with arousal. He grimaced down at his own perfectly reasonable sized erection, noting the precome beading on the tip of it ruefully. Wishing he had more control over his sex drive, Cloud rose to his feet and started on Sephiroth's hair.

It took twice as much shampoo to wash Sephiroth's thick, long mane than it took to wash his own, but Cloud enjoyed doing it almost as much as he'd enjoyed bathing his body. The hair was so silken between his fingers, especially after he added the conditioner. "It's a good thing you bought this," Cloud commented as he worked the creamy rinse into the other man's hair. "I never need the stuff but with as much hair as you've got, it would be a nightmare to comb it out after a wash without it."

"It can be a trial," Sephiroth agreed. "I've thought about cutting it off."

Cloud stopped abruptly and tugged a handful of the general's hair without thinking. "Don't ever even dream of it," he said with authority that surprised them both. "Trimming the split ends is one thing but don't you DARE cut it off."

Sephiroth winced and turned his head to look at the blonde. "But how do you REALLY feel, Cloud?" he smirked. "By the way, that's rather painful."

Cloud released his hold with a mollified look. "Sorry. I just…really love your hair the way it is." He returned his attention to working the conditioner through it, not looking at Sephiroth for fear that the man would see the love in his gaze.

"Clearly," Sephiroth said dryly. "Don't panic, though. I said I've thought about cutting it off, but I've never done it yet. It can be a pain in the ass to care for but it doesn't get in the way as some might assume."

"Good," Cloud said, keeping his eyes fixed on the glossy hair he was working on.

He couldn't see Sephiroth frown in puzzlement, nor could he know that the other man had detected the emotion he was trying to hide in his voice.

* * *

Cloud ended up pressed for time due to the abnormally long shower, but he had no regrets. He had a bowl of cereal and a glass of milk for breakfast and then he loaded the supplies of pharmacy medication he was delivering into Fenrir's storage compartments.

"I should be back this afternoon," Cloud said as Sephiroth watched with interest. "This stuff's going to the farming community between here and the Mythril Mines. They don't have a medicine supplier since the roads are so trashed, so I deliver what they need from the Kalm pharmacy every now and then." He secured the goods carefully and shut the compartment, not looking at Sephiroth.

"Cloud, if you're going to avoid looking directly at me after every sexual encounter we have, I may start to think you aren't ready for this."

Cloud looked up at him, parting his lips. "It isn't that," he said hastily.

Sephiroth crossed his arms over his chest. "Then, what is it? Enlighten me."

Cloud swallowed and closed his eyes briefly, wondering if he had the strength to tell Sephiroth what was in his heart. What if it spooked him? "I…what I feel…it isn't really logical. I've been fighting it since way before I agreed to this chip arrangement."

Sephiroth stepped closer, his glittering eyes unwavering. "Go on."

Cloud tried to look away but couldn't. "I don't think I'm ready to say it to you," he admitted a little desperately. "Not yet. I still can't understand it myself. All I can tell you right now is that I do want you and I do care for you."

Sephiroth gave him a surprisingly gentle smile. "Are these other feelings you've hinted at but are afraid to say aloud good or bad, Cloud?"

"Good," the blonde answered without hesitation. "But I have bad feelings about the good ones. I…I can't do this right now, Sephiroth. I'm sorry. Just please try to be patient with me and don't think I get quiet or nervous around you because I don't want you. I'll tell you right now, I've never wanted anyone in my life as much as I want you, so that's never going to be a concern."

Sephiroth listened quietly and thoughtfully, neither interrupting him nor asking questions. When Cloud's speech was finished, the general bent his head to capture the blonde's lips in a brief but intense kiss. "I can wait," he murmured against the kiss-swollen lips when he finished plundering his mouth. Truthfully, Cloud had already revealed enough that Sephiroth could guess what the problem was. He stepped back and watched as Cloud got onto Fenrir with a dazed expression on his face. Without another word, the blonde put his goggles on, hit the button for the garage door and started the bike up. Sephiroth watched silently as Cloud drove away.

~Afraid I'll run away screaming if you tell me you love me, Strife? Or is it your guilt for doing so that makes you so dramatic about it?~

Not that he couldn't understand Cloud's hesitation and confusion. Sephiroth had already fought his own inner demons for wanting the man that was his captor. He didn't know if it was love yet, but he certainly liked the blonde and he definitely felt attraction for him. Strife was only guilty of feeling too much compassion for someone that didn't deserve it. His participation in the enslavement of Sephiroth had been conducted for benevolent reasons. The apparent guilt he felt probably stemmed from caring about a man he should by all logic and reason despise.

With a sigh, Sephiroth went back into the house and started going through the monthly bills. As he calculated them and organized payments, he kept thinking of how ironic it was that he was again in a relationship with someone who was boyish and big-hearted. He deduced that he had some sort of innate weakness for that sort; possibly because of traits he'd never possessed himself.

* * *

Early in the afternoon, someone came knocking on the front door. Sephiroth answered it to find a familiar young woman with long brown hair and dark brown eyes standing before him. Lockheart hadn't changed much over the years, except for the wisdom in her dark eyes and the fire behind them as she looked up at him. He vaguely remembered her being present when he first arrived in Kalm, but he hadn't seen her at all since he'd recovered.

"Is Cloud home?" She asked in a clipped tone. Here was one that still knew how to hold a grudge.

"He's away on a delivery," Sephiroth answered, noting the tension in her frame.

She swore beneath her breath and he tilted his head. "I trust it must be something important."

She looked at him searchingly for a moment before answering. "A corrupted Mako geyser erupted near Midgar and caused a lot of damage. On top of that, it's somehow attracted a lot of mutated animals from the surrounding plains and they're roaming into the city and attacking people. They're trying to evacuate the areas that people still live in but it's slow because of all of the construction. It's all over the news but I didn't know if Cloud saw it yet and nobody's able to reach him on the phone."

"He's probably got it switched off while he's traveling," Sephiroth reasoned. "He couldn't hear it over the roar of that bike's engine anyway. You can come inside and wait for him if you'd like. He should be back soon."

He wasn't surprised when she reacted to his invitation to come in with an expression of alarm. "You're inviting me to come in and sit here alone with you?"

"Or stand," Sephiroth shrugged. "Is something wrong with that?"

Tifa stared at the man and didn't bother to hide the astonishment on her face. "Yes, there's something wrong with that! You killed my father and burned my hometown! You cut me when I tried to stop you and you did the same to Zack and Cloud! Why in the world would you think I'd want to be alone and out of public view with someone like you?"

"Because you're either going to have to put your feelings about me aside for a short time or get them out into the open and deal with them, Ms. Lockheart," Sephiroth said with cold honesty. "I assume Cloud is going to want to help with this effort when he hears about it and I'm most likely going to be coming with. It will be much easier for you to work with me if you aren't allowing resentment and anger to fog your judgment."

Tifa tried to think of a rebuttal for that, but Sephiroth was right…damn him. She couldn't live in fear of the man and she couldn't concentrate on helping the people in Midgar if she was too preoccupied with seething over what he'd done. She knew that he would be a big help if he came along, having the tactical experience and power that he did. If nothing else, she trusted Cloud to have taken measures to keep Sephiroth from harming her or anyone else.

"Fine," Tifa said, matching Sephiroth's stare with her own. "Don't mistake me for a pushover and don't think I'm going to let my guard down."

"I wouldn't dream of either, Ms. Lockheart," Sephiroth answered politely, standing aside for her to enter the house.

Tifa swallowed and walked through the doorway. Sephiroth closed it behind him as he followed her inside.

* * *

-To be continued


	12. The mighty have fallen Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 12

Tifa sat tensely on the lounge chair closest to the foyer and the front door. She looked like she was ready to bolt at any minute—like a nervous doe. Sephiroth kept his distance from her and deliberately avoided making any sudden moves. While he was mildly amused by her behavior, it wouldn't be very productive if he scared her away. He considered boiling some coffee and offering her a cup but thought better of it, deciding that she was already on-edge enough without caffeine. Perhaps a less stimulating beverage was in order.

"Do you drink tea?"

Tifa jumped involuntarily when he asked the question. Silently cursing herself for being so obvious with her wariness, she nodded. "Yes, thank you."

"Any particular preference? I have standard black, mimmet, Curiel and Carob nut, green tea and lemon infusion."

Tifa blinked up at the man and tried to absorb the fact that the mighty Sephiroth was standing there casually offering her a list of different teas. His slit-pupiled gaze was mild and calm as he looked back at her and waited for an answer. "I never pictured you as a big tea drinker," Tifa said impulsively. "Or a good host, for that matter," she added beneath her breath.

"What sort of beverage did you imagine me drinking, Ms. Lockheart? Anti-Freeze, perhaps?" Sephiroth regarded her curiously, a slight smirk on his face.

"I don't know," Tifa said honestly, placing her hands on her knees and squeezing to control their trembling. "energy drinks or protein drinks, I guess. Tea is so…domestic and…and…human."

Sephiroth's smile broadened with amusement, giving more of a "human" impression to contend with Tifa's ideals of him being something else. "Those are for overzealous athletes and body builders," he responded dryly, "the energy drinks are loaded with sugar and the protein drinks are full of junk carbs and fat. Neither of them is good for you unless you favor insomnia and want to rot your teeth or clog your arteries. Tea and coffee are natural antioxidants and the former is soothing. I've found it helps me to calm down and focus if I'm feeling…anxious."

She stared at him speechlessly for a minute. _~He's a health nut!~_ She should have known, though. Having lived his whole life under strict observation and military regulation, it made sense that he was fastidious about a healthy lifestyle. With all of the poison Hojo kept him on it was really no wonder that he avoided consuming artificial chemicals, as well.

Sephiroth began to lose patience, but he kept his demeanor mild and polite to avoid startling her further. "Would you prefer one of Cloud's soft drinks?"

She noticed the curl to his lip when he offered the soft drinks and she almost smirked. He offered it like he was offering a dead rat or something. "No, tea is fine, thank you. Which would you recommend?"

He studied her for a moment before answering. "The Curiel and Carob nut combination would probably be ideal for you. It's the best for easing tension."

 _~Do I really look as tense as I feel? So much for playing it nonchalant.~_ Tifa sighed and nodded. "Then I'll have that one, please."

He nodded and went into the kitchen. She sat there for a moment, listening to the sounds coming from the kitchen as he set the kettle to boil and got the cups ready. Tifa frowned as a little voice inside her head reminded her that this man was a known psychopath and it probably wasn't a good idea to let him prepare a beverage for her out of sight. Swallowing hard, she stood up and walked toward the kitchen, stopping at the threshold to watch what Sephiroth was doing.

Sephiroth looked very out of place, standing there selecting tea bags from the boxes on top of the refrigerator and dropping them into mugs. Tifa couldn't decide if the sight was unsettling or amusing—the tall, fallen angel performing everyday mundane domestics. She almost squeaked in fright when he spoke to her without looking up from his task.

"Is there something else I can get for you Ms. Lockheart, or are you afraid I'm going to poison you?" He glanced up at her briefly and gave her a humorless half-smile. "You realize of course that poisoning isn't my style. If I wanted to kill you, it would be quick and direct."

She instinctively shifted into a defensive stance as a response, not bothering to reply to his casual talk of how he'd kill her.

Sephiroth looked at her again, his green eyes scanning her form. He nodded. "I expect no less of you. However, I should inform you that even if I was interested in harming you I couldn't. Cloud was very thorough in prohibiting me from harming anyone in any way, except to defend myself." His eyes flashed with dark amusement. "Now, if you were to attack _me_ , I could do everything short of killing you. In self defense, of course." He turned his attention back to the task at hand, pouring the hot water into the mugs with the teabags.

She wisely relaxed her stance with that information. As much as she was itching to punch that beautiful, arrogant face, Tifa was worldly enough to know that she was no match for Sephiroth on her own. Cloud was the only one that had ever had a chance to best him alone. Still, she was confused over his words. "Tell me something honestly," she said as calmly as possible, "You said 'if you were interested in harming me'. If you didn't have that trigger stopping you, would you do it?"

"Do you really want to know?" Sephiroth asked with a sidelong glance at her.

She nodded, bracing herself. "If it's all a trick, Cloud would never believe me. He's…his feelings for you have him convinced you're a different man. Or at least, he's convinced that you're the man you were before you got your hands on the information Hojo left in the mansion. You've got nothing to lose by being straight with me."

Sephiroth mulled over her demand, considering telling her what she clearly wanted to hear just to see her reaction and get revenge at being accused. Doing so would only hinder the purpose he had in inviting her into the house, however. With a sigh, he turned to her and looked her in the eyes. "I think I've hurt you quite enough, Tifa."

There it was. The pain, the broken dreams, the agony of loss…the mirror of her eyes cracked and tears filled them. "An apology?" She scoffed, "From the great Sephiroth? Isn't that beneath you?"

"I never said it was an apology," Sephiroth corrected softly, still holding her gaze, "At the time I thought I was justified. I thought I was avenging my mother and doing her will. Apologizing for that would be asking for forgiveness, which I _will not do_. It's pointless, it changes nothing, and ultimately I think it would be cowardly. If I knew then what I know now, I would have realized that the whispers in my head were lies and perhaps I could have ignored or fought against Jenova's influence. I would hope that I would have done things differently, such as taking my rage out on my _'father'_ -" He spat the word, "instead of your town."

He paused and lowered his eyes, his long silver lashes casting shadows over his cheekbones. "Asking you to forgive my actions would absolve me of responsibility and put the onus of recovery on you. I don't make excuses for myself and I don't expect others to fix my errors. I'll find a more direct way to pay my dues. Until then, feel free to despise me, loathe me, wish me dead—just do yourself a favor and get it out of your system, before you go on this rescue operation."

He fell silent and watched her, waiting for her to react to his words. She just stared at him with a bewildered expression on her face for a while, tears slowly filling her eyes and trickling down her cheeks. He saw her expression changing as her thoughts raced and he braced himself.

Tifa picked apart Sephiroth's words mentally and it occurred to her that in his obscure way, he was trying to help her deal with her feelings. It made her angry because it reminded her that beneath everything, he was still human. She wanted him to be a monster, wanted to see him only as the murdering beast that took her friends, her town and her father away from her. All of the repressed misery and anger welled up inside of her and she snapped.

"Stop pretending to be human," she heard herself say in a raw voice. "You're nothing but a monster! You took it all away from me and now you're standing here with the NERVE to tell me I have your PERMISSION to hate you? How DARE you!" She went at him then, too enraged to care whether she died as a result. Tifa punched that angelic face, hard enough to make his head snap to the side and back.

Something inside of her screamed that she was going to die now, as Sephiroth slowly recovered from the hit and looked at her with narrowed, glowing eyes. She'd thrown the first punch and the constraints of the trigger would allow him to attack her now. She trembled with anger and adrenaline, getting ready to launch another attack.

Sephiroth didn't retaliate. He didn't even reach up to rub the place on his jaw where she'd struck him. He only stared at her.

"Fight me, you bastard!" Tifa shrieked incoherently. She lost all sense of reason and coordination, swinging blindly at him. He caught both of her wrists and stared into her eyes, his expression unreadable. He released her and stood waiting, still not retaliating against her attacks. Unable to understand why he was doing this but possessed of a sense of honor that wouldn't allow her to use her martial skills on an unarmed, non-aggressive opponent, Tifa started to pummel his chest in a stereotypically girlish manner, with the soft part of her small fists striking him instead of her knuckles. She occasionally shoved him and slapped him across the face but he still didn't react except to stand there and let her do it.

Sephiroth took her tantrum stoically, knowing that Tifa was more than capable of putting the hurt to him if she chose to use her skills. Instead, she was venting all of her rage in a way that would give her the satisfaction of hitting him without provoking a serious fight. As it was, he couldn't stop himself from wincing a bit. Tifa was much stronger than other women of her size and her slaps and soft-fisted punches were affectively painful. He knew he'd have bruises and welts from the abuse but his calculating mind told him this was the most logical and least harmful way to handle the situation. He half expected her to start with the hair pulling and scratching but Tifa was a tomboy at heart and slapping was as far as she allowed her feminine delicacy to slide.

After a few minutes she began to sob. Sephiroth really wasn't expecting a cliché with the brunette, but she surprised him by sagging against him and crying raggedly. He frowned and tried to think of what to do next. Her hands were pressed against his chest and so was her face. She wasn't embracing him, thank Gaia, but it was still awkward. Giving comfort was an alien thing to Sephiroth, particularly when the person who needed it had just finished slapping, pushing and punching him.

 _~I should have expected this but somehow I thought Lockheart would sooner kiss a snake than touch me. Where the hell are you Cloud? You're the one that should be taking care of this part!~_

Trapped in the situation, he had two choices. The first one was to pull away from her and tell her to pull herself together. While that was highly tempting, it wasn't conductive to helping her deal with her resentment and might make the situation worse. The second option was to…to…hold…her.

 _~For fuck's sake…why couldn't she just get her licks in and be done with it?~_

Another voice that sounded suspiciously like Zackary's broke into his thoughts.

 _~You owe her this much, man. The least you can do is give her a little comfort and maybe a pat on the back or two. Suck it up, Pal.~_

"Shut up, Zackary," Sephiroth muttered. He hadn't meant to say it aloud but evidently he did.

"What?" Tifa sniffled against his chest.

"Nothing," Sephiroth answered quickly. He gingerly put his arms around her and waited for her to cry it out.

* * *

Cloud returned home eagerly, wanting to apologize to Sephiroth for being so dramatic that morning and taking off without saying goodbye. After pulling into the garage and locking it up, he went into the house without even taking his goggles off, hungry for the sight, feel and scent of his lover. The first thing he noticed when he walked through the door leading into the house was the sound of Tifa's voice, coming from the living room. He couldn't imagine her willingly coming into the house to be alone with Sephiroth, so his first reaction was to charge into the living room to make sure she was okay. He stopped himself when he realized that her voice was calm. She was saying something about Midgar and defense.

Confused as to why she was here when he knew damned well she could hardly stand the sight of Sephiroth, Cloud hurried into the living room—though at a less brisk pace than he originally planned. He stopped when he passed through the hallway entrance and found Tifa calmly sitting on the recliner, taking a cup of tea from Sephiroth, who stood over her. Cloud tore his goggles off of his head and blinked at the two of them. Sephiroth looked like he had a faint bruise on the right side of his jaw and Tifa's eyes were swollen as if she'd been crying. They both stopped their conversation and looked at him when he passed the threshold into the living room.

"Uh…hey Tifa. Is…is everything okay?" Cloud asked with trepidation.

"Not really. Everyone's been trying to reach you all day long. Cid's picking everyone up on the Highwind and coming here to get us, if you'll come with."

"What's going on?" Cloud demanded, crossing the room to kneel before her. "Are you okay?" He looked up at Sephiroth. "Did you hurt her?"

Sephiroth parted his lips to answer but Tifa beat him to it. "Actually it's more like the other way around," she explained. "I…I kind of slapped him around a little. He never touched me."

Cloud's eyes went round. "You slapped Sephiroth around?" He looked from her to his lover and back again. "You let her?"

"We can discuss that later," Sephiroth said with a shrug. "Don't you want to know why your friends are on their way, Cloud?"

Cloud groaned and put his gloved hands over his eyes, rubbing with futility as he felt a headache coming on. "Yeah, someone please tell me what the hell's going on."

Tifa explained what had happened in Midgar. "So are you with us, Cloud?"

He rolled his eyes. "That's a stupid question. Of course I am." He looked at Sephiroth hesitantly. "With any luck, he is too. What do you say, Sephiroth?"

"I could use the exercise," the silver-haired man said casually. "You may find it difficult to convince your friends to work with me, however."

"I've told them all about the clones and they know you're the real Sephiroth," Cloud answered.

"Which doesn't change the fact that I still have a history," Sephiroth reminded calmly.

"They'll cope," Tifa said with confidence, drawing an amazed look from Cloud. "If I can do it, they can too."

Cloud was full of questions, but he didn't know how to ask them yet. "I'll go and get Fenrir ready. Tifa, if there's anything you need you should go home and get it, then meet us back here. I'll try to get in touch with Cid to let him know we'll be waiting at my place."

She nodded in compliance and downed her tea before standing up to leave. She paused on her way out the door and exchanged a look of understanding with Sephiroth. Then she left, leaving poor Cloud wondering what went on during his delivery.

When she was gone, Cloud turned to look at Sephiroth. "She hit you?" He asked, knowing that Sephiroth couldn't have initiated a fight. When the other man nodded, he followed up with; "And you didn't do anything in retaliation?"

"Correct." Sephiroth answered evenly.

Cloud stepped closer, holding the other man in his sapphire gaze. "You could have. I made sure you could at least defend yourself, even if you can't kill someone to do it. So why didn't I come home to find Tifa beaten half to death on the floor?"

Sephiroth returned his level stare. "It didn't suit my purpose."

Cloud closed the rest of the distance between them and stared searchingly up at him. "Why not? What's your purpose?"

"Maybe it's to gain your trust and lead you all to believe you have me sufficiently tamed," Sephiroth said in a bored tone. In truth, he wasn't comfortable with these questions and there was an odd feeling of hurt lurking somewhere inside of him that he couldn't understand. The way Cloud had immediately accused him of harming his friend when he came into the house made it clear that he didn't trust him. It shouldn't have bothered Sephiroth but for some reason it did. He was being deliberately cold to conceal the disappointment he felt. Being feared and mistrusted was nothing new to him, after all.

Cloud stared at him for a moment, then smiled slowly. "What, afraid someone's going to see your compassionate side, Sephiroth?"

Sephiroth snorted and averted his eyes. "Think what you like."

"Something tells me I'm getting warm," Cloud teased.

Sephiroth glared at him. "It wasn't practical to leave her floundering in her rage. I simply offered her a way to climb out and move on. It wasn't out of charity, if that's what you believe."

Cloud nodded but his eyes were twinkling, silently telling Sephiroth that he knew better. "Right. No charity, no compassion. It's totally logical for a man like you to stand there and take hits when he doesn't have to, especially when you don't give a damn about that person's feelings or reasons."

Cloud started to turn away to get Fenrir ready for the trip, but he paused and threw over his shoulder, "Sephiroth, being human isn't as bad as you might think. You aren't a monster."

Sephiroth watched him leave the room with narrowed eyes, wondering how in the hell Strife managed to pick up on things that nobody else could.

* * *

Tifa returned approximately fifteen minutes later, armed with her best fighting gloves and carrying a duffle bag full of supplies. "Okay, I've got first aid supplies, some food and drink, extra clothes and some alcohol."

Both Cloud and Sephiroth looked at her strangely.

"Clothes?" Cloud asked.

"Alcohol?" Sephiroth queried at the same time.

She rolled her eyes. "Yes, clothes and alcohol! We don't know how long this is going to take so the change of clothes is just a precaution. The whiskey is supposed to be for medicinal purposes, since the only pain medicine I had was aspirin and we don't know what the WRO is supplied with. We also don't know how many wounded we'll find and we may need more antiseptic than we've got available."

"Just make sure Barret and Cid don't find it," Cloud said wryly.

"It's in a hidden pocket," Tifa informed him with a grin. "Do you boys already have everything you need packed?"

Sephiroth raised and eyebrow at her. Tifa sighed. "Fine; you big, strong, manly-man-men. Whatever."

"Yes Mother," Cloud chuckled. "We've got everything we need. Now we're just waiting for Cid to show up."

"Well, maybe we could check the news while we wait, to see how it's going so far?" Tifa suggested.

"Good idea," Cloud agreed.

Sephiroth declined to join them, choosing instead to change into his standard fighting uniform and go upstairs to warm up for what was to come. Cloud watched him go with a frown, hoping that he hadn't overstepped himself earlier.

He found it difficult to follow the news broadcast because he was distracted. It wasn't that he didn't care about what was currently happening in Midgar, but so far nothing particularly interesting had happened by way of progress or further damage. The screen showed an aerial view of the city, where a geyser of green Mako could be seen shooting out from the ground close to the northern walls.

The pressure caused by the geyser pushing to the surface had caused an earthquake strong enough to put several cracks in the outer walls of the city. It was through those cracks that the invading creatures were able to get in and the WRO had its hands full preventing more from entering. Incidentally this meant they could only spare so much manpower to move into the city and clear out the monsters that were already there, as well as rescue any trapped citizens. That was where Cloud and his friends would come in.

After a while, Cloud was getting restless and he was just about to go upstairs and check on Sephiroth when impatient banging on his front door signaled the arrival of Cid.

"You in there, Cloud? Hurry the hell up, would ya? Everyone's waiting!"

Cloud hurried to the door and opened it. Cid hadn't changed much, though his hair was a little longer in the back than usual. He held a cigar in one hand and a cell phone in the other. "Looking good, kid," he said to the blonde as he eyed him. "Where's your pet psycho?"

"Do me a favor and don't call him that," Cloud sighed. "Things will go a lot easier if you don't offend him, trust me."

Cid shrugged. "If you say so. The Highwind is just outside town. I've got a truck here to take Tifa and me to it. I guess you and psycho are taking your bike?"

Tifa came up behind Cloud. "Seriously Cid…don't call him that. He's unpredictable as it is and I'd rather not test the restraints."

Cid smiled at the brunette. "There she is. How are ya, darlin'? Still as cute as a bug's ear, I see."

Cloud stepped aside so that Tifa could hug the pilot. "Not bad," she smiled. "How's Shera?"

"She's coming with," Cid grumbled. "She's got her damned gadgets with her and she wants to get readings…says she thinks she can find a way to purify the geyser and set the flow back to how it should be, or some shit like that. We'd better hurry."

"I'll start loading everything while Cloud gets Psycho…er…I mean Sephiroth from upstairs," Tifa said, shooting an apologetic look to Cloud for her slip of the tongue.

Cloud groaned softly. He was starting to get a bad feeling about all of this.

* * *

"What's HE doing here?" Yuffie said as soon she saw Sephiroth. Cloud had just finished securing Fenrir in the cargo hold with his lover's help and his fears were confirmed as soon as they set foot on the upper deck with everyone else.

"He's here to help," Cloud said crossly. "Hello to you too."

Yuffie gave him a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Come on, you know I'm glad YOU'RE here. I just want to know why you brought HIM. We don't need help from the likes of him." She pointed at Sephiroth rudely, glaring at him.

"I'm with the pipsqueak," Barret rumbled. "Just send him home, Spiky!"

"His abilities could prove an asset," Nanaki cut in. "I think that for the sake of the people of Midgar, we should put our differences aside."

Yuffie gave the lion an incredulous look. "After what he did? Midgar's in such horrible shape in the first place because of him!" Evidently she'd forgotten that Sephiroth wasn't actually responsible for Meteor or the resulting destruction caused by it and the rampaging Weapons.

Barret added his glare to Yuffie's, not bothering to correct her.

Sephiroth frowned right back at them. "I've never seen any of you people before in my life," he stated calmly. Then his eyes narrowed on Yuffie and a spark of recognition lit them. "Except you. You were just a kid the last time I saw you. Godo's daughter, correct?"

"That's right," Yuffie answered.

"You threw rocks at my men and I," Sephiroth murmured.

"Well, you were invading my country," Yuffie countered. "So what?"

Sephiroth shrugged. "Fair enough. What's done is done. The rest of you I've never seen before."

A tall man with raven hair, wearing a mixture of black leather and tattered red clothing, stepped forward. "Jenova orchestrated those occurrences, using replicas of Sephiroth to do her will," he reminded Yuffie and Barret. "He was who she intended to be her harbinger…her dark angel. She couldn't use the real Sephiroth to do it, so she created copies of him."

Sephiroth stared into the man's ruby eyes, feeling a strange sense of familiarity from him but unable to recall ever seeing him before. "And you are?" he questioned.

"Vincent Valentine. I provided Cloud with the documents containing the truth of your origins."

"Interesting," Sephiroth muttered. Aloud, he inquired; "How is it that you had access to them?"

Vincent almost smiled, but his eyes were cold. "I have…connections…to your true mother and your father. I knew where to look, having been an experiment of Hojo's myself."

Sephiroth's fists clenched. He noticed that the lion creature had a number tattoo on his rump and it occurred to him that half of the people on this ship had experienced his "father's" loving care.

"He's gone," Vincent said softly, as if reading Sephiroth's thoughts. "Focus on something productive."

Sephiroth was about to make a sarcastic response to that, but his eyes caught sight of something that had him immediately puzzled and confused. There was a giant pink mog hopping toward their group from the opposite side of the deck, and on its back was a little black and white cat wearing a crown and a red cape.

Sephiroth kept his eyes fixated on the approaching creatures and leaned over to whisper; "Strife, what in the hell are those things?"

His amazement doubled when the cat spoke. "Time's runnin' short, folks! Why aren't we airborne yet?"

Cloud laughed, having never seen an expression of open amazement and caution on the other man's face before. "That's Cait Sith. The mog is just his ride because he's too small to keep up with us on his own. He's…well…he's a mechanical cat. He's also Reeve."

Sephiroth's frown deepened and he flicked his eyes from Cait Sith to Cloud. "You're telling me that thing is Reeve?"

"Well, sort of. Reeve made him and he controls him. He sends him out to help when he can't get away to do it himself. Honestly the cat does a better job than the man, but don't tell him I said that."

Sephiroth straightened up and regarded the cat, which was slapping Cid on the back and hollering at him to get a move on. "I'm beginning to wonder if I ever truly woke up," Sephiroth muttered. "I've heard of Nanaki's tribe but the talking stuffed cat is hard to swallow."

"You'll get used to it," Cloud said with a grin.

Sephiroth smirked at him. "So you say. You surround yourself with interesting allies, Cloud."

"Um, HELLO," Yuffie cried, "Are we seriously taking Sephiroth with us?" Of all of them, she at least had as much reason to hate Sephiroth as Cloud and Tifa did. Unfortunately for her neither of the latter two were still holding a grudge.

Sephiroth glared at her and Cloud stepped in front of the tall swordsman to shush his petite friend. "Yeah, we're taking him with us and you can stop arguing about it. People are hurt and in danger and Sephiroth has the experience and skills to help us save them faster."

"Come, Yuffie," Vincent said, putting an arm around the fuming girl's shoulders. "Shera has some refreshments below deck. You should abide by Cloud's decision and settle down before we reach Midgar."

Grumbling under her breath, the young ninja allowed Vincent to guide her away. Cloud sighed with relief, thankful that Vincent had such an influence on Yuffie. He never would have imagined the two of them making such a good team but somehow it worked and the former Turk always managed to curb Yuffie's reckless nature.

"Anyone else object?" Cloud asked his friends, eyeing each of them in turn except for Nanaki—who had been in favor of including Sephiroth from the beginning.

"I don't like it," Barret complained, "but maybe he'll come in handy after all."

Tifa didn't say anything, she only nodded at both Cloud and Sephiroth before going below deck to join Vincent and Yuffie. Nanaki was indifferently licking his fur, bathing himself like a normal feline. Cait Sith was busy trying to back seat fly while Cid impatiently swatted at him and cursed while alternately working the controls.

"Cloud, come get this fucking cat off my back!" Cid shouted when he got the engine going.

* * *

-To be continued


	13. The mighty have fallen Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 13

Cid piloted the Highwind to the borders of Midgar, touching down just outside the base camp set up by the militia that Reeve and Rufus sent to deal with the problem. As soon as Cloud and his party exited the craft and started toward the base to assess the situation, none other than Tseng of the Turks came to greet them. The sharp-dressed man's long black hair was immaculately groomed as always and his eyes were hidden behind dark shades.

"Great," Cloud muttered, "just what we need on top of everything else. I really could have lived without dealing with the Turks."

"Rufus' idea, no doubt," Vincent commented softly as they closed the distance to meet Tseng. "Although Reeve is publicly active in government matters, Rufus is still behind the curtains and he keeps his Turks involved to monitor everything."

Tseng stopped a few feet away and Cloud could tell by the angle of his face that he was looking at Sephiroth. The Turk grimaced and pressed a hand against his torso in a gesture that seemed involuntary. Cloud smirked; realizing he was remembering the near-fatal wound given to him in the Temple of the Ancients by who he thought was Sephiroth.

 _~He looks like he's ready to shit his pants. This is the first time I've ever seen his composure shaken.~_

Tseng seemed to collect himself—perhaps reminding himself that the silver warrior standing before him wasn't actually the one that nearly killed him. Still, he approached with caution. It dawned on Cloud that Tseng had known Sephiroth back in the days when he was still active as the general of the Shinra army. Evidently, the familiarity didn't ease his tension.

"Strife," Tseng said formally, giving a small bow. His head turned to Sephiroth. "General," he said, this time with a deeper bow. "It's good to see you've…recovered."

"Yes, you seem very enthused," returned Sephiroth derisively.

"How is Edge holding up?" Cloud asked, trying to avoid unnecessary confrontations and eager to get started.

"Most of the structural damage was done to the inner city sectors," Tseng explained, "The newer structures in Edge have held up fairly well, save for the walls. We've blocked off infested areas to keep the rest of the outer city safe from the creatures but we haven't been able to spare enough people to go into the invaded zones to rescue anyone trapped there. That will be up to you and your people."

"You left people trapped in there?" Barret sputtered, clenching his jaw. "Man, you Turks are still as cold as ever!" Thankfully he and Marlene had been visiting Rocket Town when the disaster struck and he was able to leave her with Shera's mother while he left with Cid to come and help.

Cloud could see the fury building in the dark man's eyes and he patted Barret's shoulder and murmured, "Take it easy. Marlene's safe and we're going to fix this."

"We did what was required to minimize the damage," countered Tseng impassively. "Some of the citizens that were in the blocked sectors have already managed to escape through the broken wall segments to be taken in and cared for by our medical staff. The rest are either wounded or trapped, somewhere in the deeper metropolitan of Old Midgar or in their homes in Edge, waiting for help."

"We'll get them out," Cloud promised…not so much to Tseng but to Barret and Tifa, who were both getting increasingly agitated. "First, we need to see a schematic of the city if you've got one, so we can get an idea of what sectors are blocked off. Shera also has some equipment on board the Highwind that she'd like to bring into the camp. She has some ideas she'd like to discuss with your science team."

"Of course," Tseng agreed. "Please, come this way."

"We'll save them," Cloud whispered to Barret, looking at him with earnest sapphire eyes.

Sephiroth silently watched the way Cloud interacted with his friends and the way he took charge. The general smiled inwardly, impressed and even a little proud of the young man. If he'd seen this side of Strife when he'd first joined as a recruit, he'd have called the commanding officers that voted against Cloud being promoted into SOLDIER fools. Then again, Strife had matured far beyond the shy, jittery little teenager that previously worked as a grunt. While still retaining some of his youthful innocence, shyness and looks, he was clearly a different man now than he was then.

He walked beside Cloud as the group followed Tseng into the base camp, his sharp eyes taking in the layout of the encampment and the distance to Midgar. He noticed Cloud watching him and he raised an eyebrow inquiringly.

"What do you think?" The blonde asked, gesturing at the camp and the city below the cliff with a broad sweep of his arm.

"I think you've got the situation in hand," Sephiroth answered honestly. "If I find something flawed in your decisions I'll let you know."

Cloud flushed with pleasure, his lips curving upwards at the corners as he lowered his bright eyes. Sephiroth found himself inexplicably breathless and afflicted with a sudden and powerful urge to ravish those lips, without regard to the audience around them.

 _~Dammit Strife…your effect on me becoming distracting. How can I want you this much when I don't even have a proper libido to speak of?~_

It was maddening. All it took was a smile from that sweet mouth of his to make Sephiroth want to do things to him…things that would make him cry out and moan the way he had on the bike, then on the couch and finally in the shower. Sephiroth wasn't used to wanting to initiate contact like that all of the time and it confused the hell out of him.

 _~I just have to stay focused, as I always do. It would be pathetic if a man that can't even get it up were so distracted by a smile from his lover that he couldn't concentrate on his priorities. I'm above that sort of foolishness.~_

Sephiroth kept telling himself this as they progressed into the base camp, but he was powerless to stop looking at Cloud from the corner of his eye and admiring his beauty. Obviously he wasn't so far above such foolishness as he thought, because memories of previous, pleasurable encounters with Cloud kept flashing in his mind and Sephiroth knew that if he weren't afflicted as he was, he'd have a raging erection by now.

He knew that the attraction he felt for Cloud was as much due to the blonde's courage and dedication as it was to his looks. It was a small comfort to the general, because the reasons for his feelings didn't change the fact that he was fast approaching an obsession.

* * *

"The worst of the damage is near the old Sector 7 area," Tseng pointed out as they crowded around the map.

"Sector 7," Cloud repeated softly, remembering the Church and Aeris. He felt a lump form in his throat and he swallowed it. Tifa's hand reached out and grabbed his, squeezing it gently. He returned the pressure and focused his attention back on the schematic.

"I think we're going to need snipers to cover the barricade points," Cloud mused. They can cover anyone trying to leave and stop any beasts from making it into the safe zones."

"We can provide some, but not many," Tseng said.

"Those turkeys couldn't hit the broad side of a barn anyway," Cid commented with a shrug. "I say we let Scarf-Head and One-Arm take point on the east and west side. That way we'll have some _real_ firepower happening."

Both Vincent and Barret looked at Cid with a mixture of annoyance and flattery, insulted by the nicknames he gave them while at the same time mollified by his faith in their marksmanship.

Cloud smiled and nodded. "I like that idea. So, now that we have the blockades covered we need to decide who's going to search the housing in Edge. My guess is that if there are women and children trapped anywhere, most of them will be in the newly built areas." Cloud looked up from the map and considered his group, trying to decide. Tifa was good with children and probably the least threatening and most levelheaded member of the team. "I think Tifa should go, but she'll probably need a partner."

"I'll go with her," offered Yuffie immediately. Cloud thought about it and nodded. "All right. I think we need one other person, though. Some buildings might be collapsed and you need some extra muscle. Our top priority is getting the women and children out." He turned to Sephiroth and asked; "What do you think?"

Sephiroth immediately looked at Cait Sith, who had his little elbows propped on his mog's head and was leaning over to look at the map. "You. Er…cat. What weapons do you have at your disposal?"

The little cat held up what appeared to be a megaphone.

"That's it?" Sephiroth snapped, losing patience.

"Well, there's tha' megaphone, and I've got this fellow," Cait Sith replied as he curled a paw and knocked on his mog's head. "He packs a punch, lad!"

Sephiroth revised his opinion of the automated animal (and with it, Reeve's sanity). He also realized that the megaphone could prove useful in more ways than storing materia. "Perfect," the general said in a much calmer voice, giving everyone pause.

"What? I don't get it?" Said Yuffie.

"Frightened children are likely to trust a stuffed animal and a pair of women," He elaborated, "and the cat can call out to survivors with that megaphone he carries, as well as direct them to safety. Unfortunately it may attract the attention of any roaming creatures but I'm sure you ladies can handle that while the feline guides civilians to safety."

Yuffie exchanged contemplative looks with Tifa and Cait Sith. Tifa nodded. "It sounds reasonable to me."

"Yeah," Yuffie agreed resentfully. She clearly hated agreeing with any plan of Sephiroth's but it really did make sense.

"Count me in!" Cait Sith meowed enthusiastically.

Cloud grinned. "Cool. I'll be taking Fenrir into the inner city. It's too hard to navigate with a regular vehicle or on foot. Nanaki's the only one that can keep up, so he'll be going with me. Is that okay, Nanaki?"

"Of course," answered the lion.

"Then that leaves the borders between Old Midgar and Edge," Continued Cloud. His blue eyes looked at Cid and Sephiroth and he winced a little. "Sephiroth and Cid will be in charge of searching and clearing those areas."

The general and the pilot looked at one another, neither looking particularly enthused with the pairing.

"Between the two of you, there's good range and power," Cloud explained. "Sephiroth can slice through just about anything and Cid can spear through just about anything. You can both knock down walls and get past debris better than anyone here. That's going to count where I'm assigning you."

Sephiroth tried to think of any excuse not to be teamed up with the obnoxious pilot and his smelly cigars, but Cloud's reasoning was flawless. He looked the blonde in the eye and silently told him he would pay for this, but he nodded. Cloud grinned at him, catching the private message and apparently not intimidated by the promise of later punishment.

Cloud almost laughed at the expression on his lover's face. Given how health conscious Sephiroth was, he felt bad enough for teaming him up with a smoker. Cid's uncivilized demeanor was probably just as torturous to Sephiroth as the cigar smoke was. The pilot likewise frowned unhappily with the decision but truthfully, the only members of their group besides himself that Cloud could imagine not hating being teamed with Sephiroth were Cait Sith and Nanaki…and possibly Tifa. Unfortunately they were needed elsewhere and Cid was a good match, at least in fighting style.

"Okay, now let's have a look at the map again, so we can work out exactly where we're going," Cloud said. He moved around the table and brushed up against Sephiroth in the process. He bit his lip as he felt the taller man's pelvis briefly rub against his bottom and he reminded himself that there was work to be done.

"Vincent, Barret, your posts are here. You can decide between the two of you who takes the east and who takes the west…" As he continued on, he sensed Sephiroth's rising tension. He finished briefing Tifa's team on where they should go and he paused to glance up at his lover, who was standing beside him.

Sephiroth had a very odd look on his face. His silvery brows were drawn down and his green eyes were shifting about and unfocused, as if he were listening to something only he could hear. What was even stranger was the expression on his face. He had the half-surprised, half-concerned look of someone that had just come to a startling revelation. Cloud paused to murmur; "Are you okay?" to the general.

Sephiroth seemed uncharacteristically startled by the question. He looked at Cloud, then looked swiftly away and whispered, "I'm fine. I just remembered that I left something in the…ship. Carry on with what you're doing, I already understand my part and I'll be back before we move in."

Cloud and the others watched him go and Cloud noticed that he moved unusually awkwardly, hunched over slightly and nearly limping.

"What's with him?" Inquired Barret.

"No idea," Cloud answered truthfully, more worried than he cared to reveal. Most of them had no inkling of his true feelings for the general and only Tifa was involved enough in his everyday life to guess that his relationship with the man had progressed the way it had. Doing his best to hide his concern, Cloud finished with the briefing and spoke to Tseng.

"We'll do our part. You just need to be ready to assist when we bring people here," Cloud told him.

"We will. Reno, Rude and Elena are already in there searching the borders between Midgar and Edge. They have instructions to assist you if required and I hope you'll do the same for them."

Cloud grimaced. He had a feeling those three would be here if Tseng was, but he'd been holding onto the slim hope that they weren't. "Fine. Just make sure they don't try to start anything with anyone."

"We aren't a ragtag gang of criminals, Strife," Tseng said mildly. "We're here for the same reasons you are."

Somehow Cloud doubted that, but he kept his mouth shut. He jumped involuntarily as something landed lightly on his right shoulder. Turning his head, he saw that it was Cait Sith. The little cat cupped his paws over Cloud's ear and whispered; "Ye might wanna check on yer lad Sephiroth. He didna' look so good when he took off."

Cloud remembered the distracted expression on his lover's face and his heart leaped in his throat. He honestly couldn't think of anything that Sephiroth brought that he might have forgotten to retrieve from the Highwind. The man was just too thorough and as far as Cloud could tell, everything they'd brought was there in the briefing tent. "Yeah," he whispered back to the cat, "Tell the others I'm getting Fenrir and I'll be back with him as soon as I can, so that we can get started."

"Gotcha," Cait Sith replied before hopping back off of his shoulder and onto his waiting mog.

* * *

Cloud's heart was slamming against his ribcage as he hurried back to the Highwind and imagined a horrible repeat of Nibelheim. He'd never seen a look quite like that on Sephiroth's face, but once before he'd seen something that came close. Jenova's head—what was left of it—was last present in Midgar. He'd watched Kadaj dip into the container of her remains and change into Sephiroth…and then he'd had to kill Sephiroth…again. They'd never found the container and he'd assumed it was destroyed or buried beneath rubble…or even drawn back into the Lifestream.

Now, the horrible possibility that it was still there in Midgar and Jenova was trying to manipulate Sephiroth lent speed to Cloud's dash.

 _~I won't let you…I won't let you do it again! You can't take him away from me again, you fucking bitch!~_

"Sephiroth!" Cloud cried as he reached the Highwind and struggled to open the cargo door with shaking hands. His adrenaline lent him strength and he turned the sealing wheel with surprising speed. When the lock released, he yanked the heavy door open as if it were made of wood rather than iron and he charged into the cargo bay like a man possessed.

"Sephiroth?" Cloud said uncertainly when he saw his tall companion standing against the back wall, near Fenrir. Slowly, the figure turned to look at him. What he saw on Sephiroth's face and in his eyes wasn't the madness that he feared, but complete and utter bewilderment.

Cloud's racing pulse slowed with relief and he took a few steps closer. "What the hell was that back there? Talk to me."

"I have a problem," Sephiroth responded tensely.

"I figured that out," Cloud answered a little breathlessly. His heart and lungs were still trying to catch up, now that his fear was lessening. "What's the problem?"

Sephiroth turned around fully and Cloud's eyes were drawn downwards. "Oh," he said, staring.

Sephiroth tilted his head, not moving from the spot and still looking bewildered and a bit frustrated.

"Oh…OH!" Cloud exclaimed. It all made sense as the realization of what he was seeing clicked in his brain. Sephiroth's black pants outlined a very obvious and very impressive erection. Cloud was momentarily flustered and speechless, staring at the prominent boner in a daze. He shook himself out of it when he remembered the situation they were in. "Well…isn't that a good thing?"

Sephiroth hissed impatiently. "Ordinarily I would say 'yes', but given the current timing and situation…it's…distracting and uncomfortable—not to mention, entirely inappropriate. The words: 'Wrong place at the wrong time' spring to mind."

 _~Holy hell, the words aren't the only things springing, here,~_ Cloud thought, finding it difficult to tear his eyes from the sight of Sephiroth's manhood proudly pushing against its constraints.

"Cloud!" Sephiroth snapped urgently, "How do I get rid of it? I can't do my job in this condition!" His voice was strained and uncertain.

"Well," Cloud said as he took a few steps toward the other man, "I could…maybe…"

"No," Sephiroth said firmly. "Not now. There's no time for that, much as I'd love to try it." His green eyes were blazing with lust as they looked Cloud up and down. "No, you seem to find ways to make yours go away without…that. How do you do it?"

Cloud was about to explain the complicated nature of hard-ons when Sephiroth suddenly slapped his erection out of pure frustration. Cloud's perfectly reasonable speech dissolved into helpless chuckles. "Wait, that isn't going to help. If anything it might just make it—"

"—Harder," Sephiroth finished for him, groaning softly.

Cloud bit his lips, trying to control his laughter. Sephiroth noticed and frowned fiercely at him. "This is funny to you, Strife?"

Cloud cleared his throat, understanding that Sephiroth was actually _scared_. He remembered the first time he'd had a real boner and how alien it had felt. What must it be like for a man that lived his entire life without ever having one? The thought sobered Cloud and he closed the distance.

"It's okay," he said when Sephiroth backed away from him. "Hey, it's natural. Calm down. I'm not going to jump you. I don't want your first time to be rushed. Just let me help you work this out, okay?"

Sephiroth stared at him warily and Cloud felt a rush of love and sympathy for him. "Trust me," he said gently. "Please, just trust me Sephiroth. I won't touch you. Just listen, okay?"

The taller man stopped backing away, whether from pride or trust, Cloud couldn't tell. "I can't…I'm not used to this," Sephiroth whispered.

"I know," Cloud replied soothingly. "Just think unsexy thoughts. Sometimes it works. You can't really control when you get a stiffy, but sometimes you can make them go away faster if you think about things that turn you off. Try it."

Sephiroth nodded and closed his eyes. After a few moments, they flared open again and he snarled; "The only problem with that, Cloud, is that I have no idea what constitutes a 'sexy thought' and what doesn't."

"Oh yeah," Cloud muttered, wanting to kick himself for the lack of insight. "Okay, well how does it feel when you think about what we've done together?" It was a risk but he was interested to know if Sephiroth was capable of being turned on by him.

"Don't be stupid," Sephiroth said acidly, "It was your ass colliding with my pelvis that created this problem, Strife."

Cloud almost giggled…almost. "Uh…I see…so at least you know sexy thoughts include me, right?" He blushed a little as he looked at him.

Sephiroth's expression softened but his eyes retained the glow of lust. "Absolutely."

Shoving his relief and pride to the back shelf, Cloud reasoned; "So now you've just got to think of something that doesn't turn you on. Maybe even something gross, like maggots or whatever. Just don't think of me."

Sephiroth considered this for a moment and sighed. "You're standing right here, Cloud. I find it difficult to concentrate on what doesn't excite me when you're right in front of me, licking your lips like that."

Cloud had never paid attention to how often he moistened his lips but it gave him a thrill to know that the action made Sephiroth aroused. "Sorry about that," he said insincerely, making a mental note to do it more often around him. Inspiration struck him suddenly. Of all the things in the world that could repulse Sephiroth, the thought of being experimented on was certainly high on the list. Cloud frowned and wondered if it was worth traumatizing the other man to help him get rid of his erection.

"What is it, Cloud? This thing isn't going away and the clock is ticking."

Cloud sighed. "Hojo. Think of Hojo and all of the things he did to you."

Sephiroth looked stunned for a moment but he didn't object. He silently considered the blonde's words and Cloud watched a little regretfully as the tent in the other man's pants slowly deflated.

"I think that's doing it," Sephiroth said in a low voice, keeping his eyes averted.

Cloud didn't say anything, feeling guilty for bringing up such a sore subject. There was also a private fear that Sephiroth wouldn't be able to duplicate this condition again, but he kept it to himself. If he was able to get a hard-on for the first time in his life now, it surely meant that Dr. Melvin was right and Sephiroth was fortunate enough to be numbered with the men that recovered from the impotency effects of the drugs that Hojo kept him on.

Sephiroth felt conflicting feelings of relief and disappointment when his erection faded. While it was distracting, undignified and generally embarrassing, feeling his groin pull taut in response to Cloud's tight little ass brushing against him had also been gratifying and enthralling. He looked at Cloud and saw the same worries mirrored on the blonde's face that he held inside.

"Later," Sephiroth promised as he approached the smaller man and bent down to give him a lingering kiss. "I can't promise you I'll cope well with it, but I think an encore is bound to happen. Preferably at a more opportune moment."

Cloud smiled up at him and nodded. "Will you let me take care of it the next time?"

"That depends on when and where," Sephiroth answered.

"Says the man that gave me a rub-down while riding full-speed on the highway," Cloud countered with a smirk.

Sephiroth chuckled. "There was nobody around and we weren't in the middle of a rescue mission. I promise, Cloud. I'll let you introduce me to it all when the time is right."

Cloud accepted that, unable to refute Sephiroth's point.

* * *

-To be continued


	14. The mighty have fallen Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 14

After calming Sephiroth down, Cloud started up Fenrir and opened the cargo bay ramp. Sephiroth got onto the bike behind him and they rode back to the base encampment. Once there, everyone teamed up and made their way down to the city and to their designated spots. As the group split up to go to their assigned areas, Cloud thought of something important. He stopped his bike beside Sephiroth before the taller man went in and cut the engine temporarily so that they could hear one another.

"Sephiroth, the materia you've got equipped…" Cloud began hesitantly, hating to have to do this.

"I know," Sephiroth sighed, giving him an exasperated look. "I'm not to use it against anyone, I'm only to defend others with it."

"And yourself," Cloud finished, looking at him with apologetic tenderness.

 _~It's impossible to be angry with you when you give me those soulful eyes, Cloud,~_ Sephiroth thought silently, _~Even when you act like I'm going to go on a murdering rampage at any moment.~_ He nodded mutely at the blonde, trying to force his expression into something that wouldn't reveal his disappointment.

Cloud saw the frustrated resignation behind the proud man's green eyes and he felt awful. "Hey," he called as Sephiroth started to walk away. When the other man turned to look at him, he explained, "It's not really you I don't trust. You know that, right?'

The shadows lifted from Sephiroth's eyes and he looked a little surprised, as if he hadn't realized that. "I see," he murmured.

Cid was watching the exchange with a frowning, puzzled expression. At this point, Cloud didn't care if the pilot figured out what was going on between him and Sephiroth. "Take care of yourself, Sephiroth. You too, Cid," He called. He turned to Nanaki, who was waiting beside him. "Ready?"

"I am." Nanaki looked a little odd wearing the specially designed headpiece with the microphone and ear set, so that he and Cloud could communicate over the sound of Fenrir's engine. It looked almost like a strangely designed muzzle. Cloud likewise wore a headset. They took a moment to test them before leaving.

Together, they went on to the west barricade to get through to the inner city. Cid and Sephiroth took the opposite direction to the other barricade. As they walked, the pilot glanced at Sephiroth out the corner of his eye. He produced a fresh cigar from his pocket and bit off the end, still watching the other man as he lit it up. Sephiroth looked sidelong at him and frowned.

"If you're going to smoke that, walk three paces behind me."

Cid paused and thought about making a comment that the air was already polluted with dust and smoke, but even he wasn't reckless enough to ignore the signs of the general's impatience and test his luck. "Touchy," he said as he did as the man advised and fell behind a few paces.

He watched Sephiroth's shining, silver hair move in the sluggish breeze as if it had a life of its own. The way Cloud had looked at the man earlier didn't give Cid the impression of hero worship so much as infatuation. Watching Sephiroth from behind, Cid could almost understand. _~The man's got prettier hair than most women.~_

Prompted by his observations of the way Sephiroth managed to combine grace and masculinity, Cid blurted out; "Hey Sephiroth, what's the deal with you and our boy?"

Sephiroth didn't pause and his slight smile was unseen by Cid. "The deal?" he questioned casually.

"Yeah. You seem awful chummy with each other—a little too chummy, from where I'm standing."

Sephiroth stopped and turned to regard him with opaque green eyes. "What exactly are you implying, Highwind?"

Cid shrugged. "I guess I wanna know if you two are…you know…" He raised his right hand and let the wrist go limp suggestively, twiddling his fingers.

Sephiroth noted the gesture and pretended ignorance. "Arthritic?" He questioned.

Cid scowled. "No! I mean, are you a pair of fruits?"

Sephiroth tilted his head. "No, we're a pair of men. Is the pollution in the air making you hallucinate, Captain Highwind? Perhaps you aren't up to this mission."

The pilot groaned and pulled his cigar out of his mouth, smacking himself on the forehead. "No you idiot! Don't make me say it, you know what I mean!"

"I might and I might not," Sephiroth replied, enjoying the other man's discomfort. "Why can't you say it, are you afraid that by doing so you'll become whatever it is you're inquiring about?"

Cid took the bait, unable to back down from a challenge. "I can say it, I was just tryin' to be polite like Cloud asked! Are you two gay or something?"

"I prefer the term 'homosexual', but yes, we are," Sephiroth responded mildly, turning back around to continue walking. "Is that a problem for you?"

Cid hurried to catch up as he worked out the admission in his mind. He'd always wondered about Cloud on some level but he figured the kid was too tough to be a fruit, thinking his lack of interest in girls was just a symptom of being too wound up. He'd never dreamed that Sephiroth liked cock, despite his angelic countenance. "So are you doing the ugly?"

"The…the what?" Sephiroth responded, shooting a scowl over his shoulder at the other man.

"You know," Cid elaborated, "The ugly! Stuffing each other's stockings, wall-banging, pluggin' the pipes…are you fucking or not?"

Sephiroth rolled his eyes and grunted with annoyance. "I don't know why you're so concerned with what Strife and I may or may not do on our own time, but this is the end of this discussion. We have a job to do."

Cid puffed his stogy and propped his spear on his left shoulder. "Hey, I'm just looking out for the kid. He's decent people and he's had a shitty enough time of it without getting his heart broken on top of everything else. If that pisses you off, too bad."

"Breaking his heart isn't my intention," stated the general, keeping his attention focused ahead of them at the barricade they were approaching.

Cid almost tripped on some rubble and he cursed as he recovered his balance. "What's your intention, then?"

Sephiroth stopped again and turned to frown at the man. "What's anyone's intention in this world, Captain Highwind? What makes you think mine should be any different?"

"Because _you're_ different, that's why," Cid answered, not flinching beneath the general's stare. "I'm not stupid enough to think you'd let some fluffy feelings get in the way of bigger ambitions. Just so you know, if you hurt that kid, my harpoon's going up your ass."

Sephiroth arched a brow. "And here I thought you were straight."

Cid flushed and shook his weapon at him. "THIS harpoon! I wasn't making a fucking euphemism!"

"You can try," Sephiroth said calmly.

"Don't think I won't and don't think the rest of the posse won't be waiting in line behind me if you hurt him," Cid growled.

Sephiroth sighed and looked him in the eye. "Let me just make this clear to you now, so that we can conduct our part in this operation without further distraction. If the world were ending tomorrow, Cloud would be the only person on this planet I would consider worth saving. The rest of you can go straight to hell for all I care, but he's…" Sephiroth stopped, his pupils dilating wide with shock at what he'd said out loud and how close he came to saying even more…and all to this uncultured, crass stranger.

Cid pulled his cigar out of his mouth and stared at Sephiroth with an expression of surprise on his face. "Well, I'll be goddamned," he sputtered. "You've got a heart in there somewhere after all and it looks like Cloud owns it!"

Sephiroth's expression darkened and Cid realized he'd just been privy to information unintentionally given. "I'll keep it to myself," he said wisely.

The general nodded once, curtly. Then the spun around and continued on to the barricade at a brisk, purposeful pace. Cid shook his head and followed, working things over in his mind. The revelation that both Cloud and Sephiroth were fudge packers was startling enough, but Sephiroth's accidental declaration of the depth of his feelings was an all-out mind fuck.

* * *

"Cloud, there's someone trapped in the collapsed building by that pillar over there," Nanaki gestured with his nose in a southeastern direction.

Cloud didn't question the lion, having acquired a healthy respect for his superior sense of smell and hearing long ago. His senses were another reason he'd chosen to take him with into the old city, because he knew it would be harder to find trapped citizens there on his own, given the increased number of damaged structures.

Cloud steered Fenrir in the direction Nanaki indicated, swerving around debris and rubble as he went. The lion reached the building before he did and found a familiar young blonde woman crouched by one of the leaning walls of the building. "Are you injured?" he asked her.

Elena raised her tear-streaked face to him and shook her head. "No, but Reno and Rude…" She saw Cloud coming and struggled to her feet. She must have been crouching like that for some time to be so stiff. "Strife, over here!" She called, though he'd clearly already seen her. "Reno and Rude are trapped in there and we're getting no reception to call for help!"

Cloud pulled Fenrir to a stop a few yards away, noting how unstable the building looked and wanting to keep the bike out of range if it collapsed completely. "Aren't you guys supposed to be working between the city borders?" he called as he jogged over.

"We were, but Reno thought he heard someone shouting on the other side of the wall and we went to check it out," She explained, "We followed him and he was right on the money. Some stupid teenagers thought they'd be cool and sneak into the old city just before the geyser erupted. A beam fell on one of them and his friend was trying to get him out. We went into the house to help and the ceiling started falling in, and Rude shoved me out the door right before it collapsed."

"Are you sure they're still alive?" Cloud questioned.

"Cloud, is that you?" Shouted a muffled voice from somewhere inside the wreck. "What the hell are you waiting for? Get us out of here, Rude's in bad shape, yo!"

Elena smirked impulsively. "Does that answer your question?"

Cloud sighed and started searching for an opening to crawl in through. Nanaki helped, sniffing around and occasionally sneezing at the dust. Elena shook her head doubtfully as she watched them. "I already tried that. I think someone's going to have to go back and get help."

"Here, I've found a hole!" Nanaki cried out.

"Guess I missed it," Elena sighed as she and Cloud went to the spot and examined it. "Hmm, it's pretty small. Reno and the kids might fit through with some digging but Rude never will."

"I can widen it a bit," Nanaki said, "but not much. One of you will have to go in to assist the others, as I'll be too large even if I widen it."

"I'll go," Cloud said, "I'm pretty good at squeezing through tight spaces and Elena looks too wiped to help get anyone through from the other side."

Elena opened her mouth to argue, but changed her mind. Cloud was right and she'd already strained a muscle trying to get in to help her associates earlier. "I'll keep trying to reach Tseng on the phone, I guess."

Nanaki began to dig and Cloud pulled away the larger chunks of rubble. Reno started asking questions and babbling nonsense until Cloud lost patience and yelled at him to shut up. "We're going as fast as we can," the blonde snapped, "just stay where you are and wait!"

"Ca-ranky!" Reno's faint voice said.

"God, he's a pest," Cloud grunted, provoking a smile from Nanaki.

After several minutes of digging and clearing debris, they expanded the hole enough so that Cloud could squirm through. Nanaki and Elena waited anxiously as the blond slowly progressed to the other side.

Cloud couldn't see a thing, but he had a small flashlight in one of his pockets and as soon as he got through the short tunnel, he pulled it out and clicked it on. Two boys that looked to be around fourteen or fifteen were lying on the dusty wooden floor a few feet in front of him. One of them had his leg trapped under a beam that was hanging down at an angle from the ceiling. They were both awake and aside from the trapped foot, both of them appeared to be only a little bruised and shaken.

"You okay?" Cloud asked.

"Yes sir," the one without the trapped foot said. "Jenkins is just stuck. Can you get his foot free?"

"Give me a minute and I'll try," Cloud answered as he scanned the rest of the room.

There was a gaping hole in the floor beside the boys and Cloud deduced that there was a cellar beneath the room. On the other side of the hole lay Rude, with his head pillowed in Reno's lap and his stylish black glasses lying broken on the floor next to him. Reno had torn part of his own shirt off and wound it around the larger man's close shaved head as a bandage. Cloud could see a dark blood stain on the material.

"Hey Cloud," Reno greeted with unshakable cool. "'Sup? Rude's going to be major pissed when he finds out his glasses broke."

"I think that's the least of his worries right now," Cloud said, his Mako eyes studying the unconscious Turk with faint concern.

A little fear crept into Reno's expression and the redhead looked down at his partner. "Yeah, he took a bad hit trying to get Elena out of the way. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad she's safe, but…" He sighed and shook his head.

"We'll get everyone out of here," Cloud promised. "Nanaki, can you hear me?"

"I can hear you, Cloud," Responded the lion through the receiver.

"We've got two boys down here but they aren't badly hurt. One of them has his foot trapped under a beam and I'm going to try to get it free. Rude's taken the brunt of it and we'll need to get him to a medic as fast as we can."

"Shall I go and get some help?" Nanaki asked.

"I think that's a good idea," Cloud grunted as he made it to the side of the two kids and started pulling at the beam. "This building's pretty unstable and it could—"

The beam shifted under Cloud's hands and freed the boy's foot, but as soon as it did there was an ominous rumble from overhead.

Reno looked up as the ceiling began to crack and plaster rained down. "Fucking typical," he groaned.

"Into the hole!" Cloud hollered, dragging both of the teenagers and unceremoniously dumping them into the cellar. Reno did the same with Rude, grunting and swearing as he rolled the heavier man over the side before dropping in himself.

"Cloud!" Nanaki's voice cried over the comm. Unit.

There was no time to answer him. The blonde rolled away from a falling chunk of ceiling and swung his legs over the edge of the hole. Something hit him hard in the shoulder and he fell gracelessly into the hole with the others. He felt a stab of agony in his thigh when he landed and he reached down to find it impaled on something hard and metallic. He felt someone grab his jacket and start dragging him away from the opening above and under shelter. The pain was so intense that he blacked out.

* * *

"Cloud!" Nanaki shouted as the rumbling stopped and he began to dig desperately. "Cloud, answer me!"

Elena was next to him, her efforts less effective but just as determined. "Rude! Reno!"

Together they struggled to find a way into the mess, hollering for their comrades until their throats were raw and digging until their hands and paws were bleeding. Elena saw movement out of the corner of her eye and she turned. There was a pack of what may have once been wolves coming toward them, but now they were hairless, their teeth were like daggers in their oversized maws, and their eyes glowed with an unholy green light. The pack spotted the two of them and began to howl and charge.

"Company!" She yelled, flipping the safety of her gun off.

Nanaki looked and did a quick count of the pack. "Too many," he growled. "Get onto my back and hold on tightly!"

"We can't just leave them here!"

"We must!" Nanaki snapped. "It will take those beasts several hours to dig through the ruin and reach our friends, if they could even do it at all. It's us they want now and we can't take them alone!"

With that said, Nanaki activated one of the red Materia he had equipped on his bangle and he snapped his teeth over Elena's jacket tails and tugged. "Comf onf! It won'f keef dem bufsy forefer!"

Elena gaped for a moment as a goliath humanoid figure rose up from the ground and tore a slab of concrete out of the ruined street. Nanaki's teeth closed over her ankle, hard enough to sting without breaking the skin. "OUCH! Okay, I'm coming!"

She climbed onto the lion's back and leaned forward, laying flat against him and putting her arms around his neck. When he was certain she was clinging tightly enough to him, Nanaki ran. The sound of the crash as the Titan summons dropped the slab of concrete on top of some of the pursuing beasts made her wince and she buried her face in her companion's fur and shut her eyes. She felt his muscles bunch beneath her and she squeezed tightly as he leaped and bounded over a fallen column.

Slowly, the howls of the pack grew fainter as they fell behind and Elena knew that if it weren't for Nanaki, she'd be ripped to shreds and in their bellies by now. "Thank you," she choked, grateful despite her fears for her partners' safety.

"Thank me when we find the others and get some help, Miss." Nanaki panted. Then he began to howl…which Elena thought was very strange considering that he resembled a big cat more than a canine of any sort.

* * *

"Hold it!" Tifa yelled as she heard the familiar howl in the distance. "That's Nanaki…something's happened."

They had taken down nearly a dozen odd, wingless bird creatures and escorted two families to the barricade so far. They were just heading back in to search for more when Nanaki's howl cut through the air. Cait Sith and Yuffie stopped in their tracks and turned around to look at Tifa.

"Doesn't sound good, does it?" said Yuffie.

"No," Tifa agreed, listening with her head cocked to the side. "It's hard to tell where he is with the echoes but I'm sure if there's trouble, he's heading for one of the blockades. We'd better go back to meet him."

The three of them wasted no time in returning to the barricade, hoping that the others would meet up with them. When they got there, Barret whistled from his station on the wall.

"Yo Tifa, I can see Red heading for the middle from here! He's carrying somebody with blonde hair on his back!"

 _~Cloud!~_ Tifa thought immediately. Fear for her friend lent her speed and she outran Yuffie, who was usually faster than she was.

They met up between the barricaded areas and Tifa wasn't sure what to think or feel when she saw that the person clinging to Nanaki's back wasn't Cloud at all, but a woman. She recognized her as Elena.

"Where is Cloud? What happened?" Tifa asked Nanaki.

Cid and Sephiroth approached from the East, with Vincent close behind. Elena slid shakily off of the lion's back and looked around in a daze. Nanaki waited for the others to reach them before explaining what happened. "I couldn't reach Cloud on the comm. Unit after the building collapsed completely," Nanaki said, "I don't know if he's alive or not!"

The lion was so upset that he tilted his head back and began to howl again with grief. Sephiroth approached Nanaki and slapped the back of his head without warning. The lion's howl ended with a choke and he stared up at the swordsman in bewildered anger.

"Cloud is alive and your hysterics won't help keep him that way," Sephiroth said stonily. "Where is he?"

"How do you know he's alive?" Tifa asked hopefully.

Sephiroth tapped his temple with a gloved finger. "If he weren't, my constraints would be lifted. I can still feel them in place."

"The building is just outside the old sector 7 slums," Nanaki said with a snuffle. "We must hurry!" Everyone tended to forget that wise as he was, Nanaki was still young by his tribe's standards and the thought of losing a loved one made the cub in him rear its head. Yuffie went to her knees and hugged him around the neck.

"It's okay, we'll get him out!" She said. "Don't cry."

The cheerful tune of Elena's cellular phone ringing startled all of them. Hardly believing it when she looked at the screen and saw the ID, she gasped and put it on speaker. "RENO?"

"Yo, Elena?" Reno coughed through the static. The connection wasn't good and his voice kept cutting in and out. "Can't believe…*crackle*…got you!…*crackle*…bringing help?"

"We're coming," Elena said urgently. "How is everyone?"

"Rude's still out…*crackle*…bruises but I'm okay…*crackle*…Cloud's…*crackle*…he's hurt bad…*crackle*…bleeding everywhere, man! Hurry…*crackle*…hell up!" The connection died and Elena smacked the phone in frustration.

Through her own fear and concern, Tifa noticed the way Sephiroth's expression changed when Reno said Cloud was hurt and bleeding. Barret noticed it too and the big man did a double take. Sephiroth had gone pale and his lips compressed into a tight line, while the slits of his pupils widened.

Sephiroth knelt before Nanaki and spoke in a low voice with calm that was obviously forced. "I need you to take me to Cloud, now. Can you do that?"

Nanaki nodded. "How quickly can you climb?"

"I don't need to climb," Sephiroth said as he stood up straight and drew his masamune. "Just guide me and I'll clear a path. The rest of you can follow behind. Someone needs to get troops to come and guard the opening I'm going to make."

Cait Sith immediately hopped away and shouted for guards with his megaphone. It was only because the WRO militia knew that the cat was representing Reeve that they agreed to allow further destruction of city structures for the newest rescue operation.

Nanaki looked doubtful that Sephiroth could really clear a path as he said, but he didn't question the man. He led the way, taking the group to the wall that he thought was nearest to the direction they needed to be heading. Sephiroth slashed his sword in a wide V pattern, so quickly it was hard to follow the motion. The waiting troops hollered in surprised amazement when a section of the wall broke away, sliced cleanly through as if it were paper. The impact of the falling slab shook the ground and Sephiroth went through the opening without hesitation, motioning for Nanaki to come with.

"I'm sho' glad he's on our side," Barret rumbled as he and the others followed behind.

"Or at least, he's on Cloud's side," Vincent observed.

"Yeah, did you see his face when Reno said Cloud was hurt?" Yuffie whispered to Tifa.

"I did," the barmaid whispered back, watching the general's back as he made his way through the city borders, hacking apart anything that stood in the way.

Something swooped out of the sky, attracted to the commotion. Tifa started to shout a warning as it dove at Sephiroth but the silver-haired man caught it with one hand and snapped its neck before it could scratch him. He tossed the carcass aside absently and continued on without pause, urging Nanaki in a firm voice to pick up the pace.

"Wow, he's got it bad," Yuffie whispered with awe.

"Got what bad?" Elena questioned.

Yuffie rolled her eyes at the Turk. "The same thing you've got for Tseng, doofus."

Elena looked up ahead at Sephiroth with wide eyes. "You mean he's got it for Cloud? No way!"

"Shhh," Yuffie cautioned when the general glanced over his shoulder to regard them with narrowed eyes. "Don't piss him off!"

Sephiroth cut down another wall and was forced to roll aside as it fell forward instead of back. When the chunk of concrete settled, he leaped onto it easily and continued. Vincent and Nanaki were the only ones with the stride and agility to keep pace with him. The others helped each other over the slab and followed gamely.

They had to fight off roaming mutations twice more before they reached the area where Cloud and the others were trapped. When they arrived, the remainder of the large pack of canine beasts that had forced Nanaki and Elena to flee were surrounding the collapsed house, digging and growling in an attempt to reach the trapped occupants.

Sephiroth rushed forward without a word, slicing through their ranks. "No spells!" He shouted as the others hurried to help. "Any explosions could cause further collapse."

Nanaki winced, realizing that his earlier use of the summon Materia may have very well made Cloud's situation worse. It was too late to worry about it now, however. He launched himself at a wolf-beast that had spotted them and broken away from the pack. The two of them went down in a tangle of fangs, fur and claws, snarling as they grappled.

Vincent, Elena and Barret provided excellent ranged cover while the rest of them rushed in to take the creatures down. Tifa kicked one creature aside as it went for Cid's back, and he in turn speared another that was leaping for Yuffie. The slender ninja somersaulted aside and threw her Conformer at another beast, hitting it between the eyes before it could reach her. Cait Sith hollered orders to his mog and it hopped around and bopped any beasts within range on the head, crushing their skulls.

Sephiroth spun, slashed and dove through the fray. In the dim light he caught a glimpse of something gleaming and he made his way towards it. It was Cloud's sword. Sephiroth picked it up with one hand while blocking an attacking beast with his masamune. Another creature took the opportunity to get past his guard and it bit into his leather-clad arm just as he finished picking up Cloud's weapon. With a snarl, he raised his boot and kicked the mutt off, hardly feeling the teeth tear through his gear and into his arm as he forced the beast off of him. Gunfire exploded and the mutation fell to someone's bullets.

Sephiroth didn't slow; his mind was focused only on destroying the opposition and getting Cloud out of the wreckage.

* * *

"Hey Cloud, do ya hear that?" Reno said urgently, shaking the blonde to keep him aware. "There's fighting going on up there. I think our buddies are here."

The rest of his shirt had gone to making a tourniquet for Cloud's leg once he and the kids pulled the shard of metal free of his thigh, but thankfully Reno still had his jacket to keep him somewhat warm. The scrap that Cloud had fallen on was thin and narrow, so the wound thankfully wasn't wide and Reno was confident that he'd stopped the worst of the bleeding in time.

"Yo, Strife…wake up, man." Reno slapped the blonde's pale cheeks, disliking the cold feel of his skin and the white shade of his lips. "Come on, don't go into shock on me now. You and Rude are gonna owe me a new shirt and some therapy when this is over!"

Rude groaned and Reno's eyes snapped to him in relief. "Rude? You with me?"

"A house fell on me," the other Turk complained, putting a hand to his head and groaning.

"Yeah, it blows. Strife fell on a piece of metal and he's practically bled white. The poor sucker was trying to get us out, can you believe it?" Reno smacked Cloud once more and he was rewarded with a soft moan and a flutter of golden lashes. The redhead shifted the flashlight down to check on Cloud's leg. The crimson stain was still spreading over the shirt but it was doing so at a slower rate than before. "Hey Rude, can you get over here and help me tighten this thing?"

"Stop talking, you're making my head hurt worse," Rude grunted as he gingerly sat up. With some effort, he crawled over to where Reno and the two boys were. "Hold his leg steady and keep him from squirming," he said.

"Hmmm, maybe I shouldn't have woke him up, yo?" Reno said in hindsight as he clamped his hands down on Cloud's leg to hold it still and the boys braced the blonde's wrists.

"Too late now," Rude grunted. He gripped the ends of the makeshift tourniquet and pulled tight.

Cloud cried out raggedly and Reno yanked his tie off and stuffed it in his mouth.

"What the hell are you doing, Mister?" one of the boys asked.

"Keeping him from biting his tongue, kid," Reno said as he went back to holding Cloud's leg down. He winced as the blue eyes flared open feverishly and the young man bucked. "Easy," Reno said in as soothing a voice as he could muster. "Sucks to be you right now, but believe it or not this is for your own good."

Rude pulled the shirt as tight as he could get it, shooting a quietly sympathetic look at Cloud when he struggled in agony. "Sorry kid." He tied a firmer knot than what his partner had done and sat back. "That's as good as it gets, man."

Suddenly there was the sound of furious activity above their heads. There was a combination of different noises—grinding stone, metallic ringing and grunts of exertion. Reno and Rude looked at each other and then looked up, where the rubble was being cleared. Some of it shifted loose and Rude instinctively covered Cloud's body with his.

A black-gloved hand thrust through the small opening created and the fingers spread wide. A scintillating wall of light spread from the fingers, creating a protective shield over the occupants below. Reno breathed a sigh of relief and hollered out; "Good thinking! We're all here waiting!"

When the debris was lifted away and Sephiroth dropped down to regard them with glowing eyes, Reno wasn't so relieved. The general caught sight of Cloud and from his vantage point, he saw two young men holding the blonde down, a gag stuffed into his mouth and Rude laying on top of him.

"Uh, it's not what it looks like!" Reno said quickly when he saw Sephiroth's expression and guessed what he must be thinking. "Rude, move man! Show him the fucking leg before he—"

Sephiroth's blade was pressing hard against Rude's shoulder before he could even begin to do as Reno urged. "Get...Off…Of…Him," the general said in a lethal tone. The sound of other people talking above drifted down but nobody dared to call out to them.

Rude rolled away from Cloud, slowly and carefully. He held his hands up in a surrendering gesture. "I was just protecting him," he said nervously.

Sephiroth's gaze went to the shirt tied around Cloud's thigh and he sheathed his weapon. He knelt smoothly and without saying a word to any of them, he slid his arms under Cloud's shoulders and knees and lifted him carefully. The blonde's head fell back limply, his eyes fluttering shut. Sephiroth held him closer and stared down at his face.

"Sephiroth," called Tifa's voice from above, "do you have him?"

"Yes," he answered, still staring at the young man in his arms. "He's unconscious."

"Lift him up," she called, "Barret and Vincent can take him."

Sephiroth hesitated.

"Did you hear me?" Tifa called urgently.

"I heard you," Sephiroth responded.

"Well lift him up, then! Do you want him to die?"

Sephiroth snapped out of his daze. No, he didn't want Cloud to die…he just didn't want to relinquish him to anyone else's hands. When he'd heard his lover cry out in pain and found him in what appeared to be a compromised position with the Turks and the teenagers, he'd felt protective urges far stronger than what he'd felt that day he blocked the pipe from hitting Cloud. When he picked him up and saw how pale and limp he was, his heart lurched with something he couldn't even name.

Realizing that he couldn't easily get Cloud out of the hole on his own without hurting him, Sephiroth reluctantly lifted him to the opening and allowed Barret and Vincent to pull him out of his arms. Once that was accomplished, he helped the two boys and the Turks get out before pulling himself up as well. As soon as he was out he walked over to where the others had lain Cloud. He stood silently, looking down at the blonde while his friends fussed over him and all three of the Turks moved around and tried to get signals on their phones. Vincent was likewise doing the same with his and Yuffie fished Cloud's phone out of his pocket and tried as well.

Eventually Reno got a signal and he got in touch with Tseng long enough to have him send a chopper and a stretcher. Sephiroth knelt beside Cloud, not touching him but watching him steadily, making sure that his chest continued to rise and fall.

 _~You and Zackary…always getting yourselves hurt for the sake of others,~_ The general thought. He didn't care that Strife's friends were watching him suspiciously, nor did he care that they were debating over whether his feelings for Cloud were winning over what they assumed was his desire for freedom. To them, it may have appeared that he was waiting for Cloud to stop breathing but in truth he was willing him to continue doing so.

* * *

-To be continued


	15. The mighty have fallen Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 15

Sephiroth never said a word as the helicopter arrived and they loaded Cloud, Rude and the two boys into it. There wasn't room for more so he and the others had to make their own way back to the barricades. Sephiroth spotted Fenrir and he knew that Cloud would be very upset if his beloved motorcycle was left behind to risk damage by falling rubble and monsters. He motioned Tifa over and she followed him to the bike. He inserted Cloud's sword into the sheath designed to hold it and turned to Tifa.

"Can you ride?"

She looked at the bike with round eyes and shook her head. Sephiroth sighed. He'd noticed the blond woman moving gingerly and he was going to suggest that Tifa take her on the bike and go on ahead, with Nanaki running alongside for added protection. He looked at the blonde Turk and said; "What about you? Do you know how to ride a motorcycle?"

"Yes," Elena answered hesitantly, "but this isn't an ordinary cycle and my shoulder's sore, so I'll have to take it slower than usual."

"Good enough," Sephiroth said. "You and Ms. Lockheart ride to the base encampment. Nanaki, I want you to go with them."

Tifa was confused. "I'm not hurt…why do you want me to go?"

Sephiroth stepped closer to her. "The Turk girl is hurt and she'll need added protection. We can't leave Cloud's motorcycle here. Someone needs to be there to watch over Cloud and make sure he gets the care he needs. As his oldest friend I thought you'd be the most logical choice. Do I need to explain further?"

"I understand," she said as she searched his face. "I'll look after him."

"Good," Sephiroth replied shortly. He peered around and spotted Yuffie. Turning to Nanaki he asked; "Do you feel strong enough to carry a passenger?"

"Oh, no you don't!" Yuffie griped, having guessed where he was going with the question. "Save the sexism for someone else. I'm sticking with Vinny." She grabbed Vincent's arm and put on a stubborn face. Vincent looked at her with an expression long-suffering patience generally found on the face of a parent used to dealing with an unruly, stubborn child.

"Sexism?" Sephiroth inquired.

"Oh, don't play dumb," The ninja girl sighed, "You're trying to get all of the girls out of here faster. I'm just as capable as any of you penis wielders!"

Sephiroth's mouth almost twitched in response to the term "penis wielders". He cleared his throat. "My suggestion was based on your weight, not your gender. We should get everyone out of here as quickly as possible. Nanaki can cover more ground and you're the lightest person here."

"Oh," Yuffie said, looking somewhat contrite. "Well, I'm still staying with the group. The more of us there are, the better."

"It isn't productive to argue with her, at this point," Vincent said with a faint quirk to his lips.

"So I've noticed," sighed Sephiroth. He turned to Elena, Tifa and Nanaki. "Then the three of you just go."

"Watch yourself, girl," Barret said to Tifa. "Just get to Spiky and don't worry 'bout us."

As they took off, Reno asked; "I've got a question for ya…why the urgency? We've got the people to handle ourselves if we run into any more freaks."

"The sun will be setting soon," Vincent answered, having guessed Sephiroth's reasons and agreed with them. "Navigating in the dark isn't an issue for me, nor I suspect for Sephiroth. The rest of you, however…"

"Oh," Reno and Cid said in unison.

* * *

Cloud felt like his right thigh was on fire and being chewed on at the same time. His whole leg throbbed and his body was overheated. He moaned faintly as he was lifted, jostled and lifted again. He vaguely heard people talking as if from a great distance, but the words were like gibberish.

The last thing he remembered was looking up at Sephiroth, who looked like an angel with prismatic glow pulsing around his head. He'd been too out of it to realize that the glow was just the effect of the Wall spell the general had activated. He'd lost consciousness after that and woken up to pain.

Now all he could see what a white blur when he tried to open his eyes. He felt something prick his left arm and he tried to recoil from it, but hands held him down. Something rubbery pressed down on his face, covering his nose and mouth. He struggled against his restrainers and cursed, adrenaline giving him added strength.

Tifa's face came into focus above him, haloed by the white light. "Cloud? Stop struggling, they're trying to help you!" She said.

"That injection and the gas should have put him out by now," an unknown female voice said from somewhere to Cloud's right. "We need to put him under…under…under…"

An odd buzzing sound followed the echo of the mystery woman's voice and Tifa's face blurred. Darkness again claimed him.

* * *

"Okay, he's out," the anesthesiologist said with relief. "Talk about stubborn!"

"I'm afraid you'll have to leave the tent, my dear," the doctor said to Tifa. "Try not to worry, we'll get Strife's wound cleaned and stitched in no time. With any luck, the infection hasn't had time to grow too severe."

Tifa stared down at her pale, stricken friend as they started him on an IV and a blood transfusion. "What's going to happen if the infection is severe?" Her voice was raw and strained.

"That…depends," The doctor said. "Let's not worry about that now." He laid a hand comfortingly on her shoulder. "Go and get some rest and we'll send word to you as soon as we've finished."

"This way, Tifa," Tseng murmured as he gently took her arm to guide her away. She allowed him to do so reluctantly, looking over her shoulder at Cloud as they left. Tseng took her into another tent that was furnished with chairs, cots, blankets and a television with an aerial for receiving broadcasts. Nanaki was curled up miserably on a blanket there and when he saw her arrive, he stood up hopefully. Always polite, Tseng guided Tifa to a chair and turned the TV on, flipping it to a channel broadcasting a sit-com. "Would you like something to eat, or perhaps some coffee or hot coco?"

Tifa looked up at the Turk briefly and shook her head. Tseng regarded her silently for a moment before kneeling down in front of her and catching her gaze. "We've brought a very competent medical team with us," he assured her, "you can't do your friend any good if you exhaust or starve yourself. I'm sure the rest of your group will be here soon but in the meantime, I really think you should try to relax and rest."

The barmaid chewed her bottom lip and nodded. "Thank you. Tseng, will Cloud lose his leg?"

His expression was politely ignorant. "I'm no doctor, and I can't tell the future. I wish I could answer that question but all I can say is that the medical staff will do all in their power to stop the infection from spreading to a point where it would come to that."

"This is my fault," Tifa whispered, her voice breaking as she clasped her hands in her lap. "If I hadn't gone to his house and asked him to come—"

"Knowing Strife, he would have come regardless and the same thing would have happened," Tseng interrupted firmly yet gently. "He's a fighter and he knew the risks. It could have easily been you lying in that hospital stretcher, so there's no purpose to blaming yourself for his decision."

Tifa looked up at him again thoughtfully, blinking tears out of her eyes. "I love him," she said softly. "Not in a romantic way, but he's like family to me now. Please, make sure he gets all the care your staff can give him."

"I will," Tseng promised. "Now, try to relax and I'll bring you something to eat and drink."

When the Turk left, Nanaki rested a paw on Tifa's leg and said; "I don't trust the medics here to take the more difficult route and give their full attention to saving Cloud's leg. I fear they'll give up on it too soon and choose the simpler path of amputation."

Tifa looked at him with horror and tears spilled down her cheeks. "We…we can't let that happen, Nanaki. Can you think of any way to stall it until the others get here?"

"Perhaps," the lion considered. "I can at least try. You should stay remain here. If Tseng returns and you aren't here, it could raise suspicion."

Tifa reluctantly agreed and bowed her head, trying to hold her tears at bay.

Nanaki exited the tent, moving casually out in the open to avoid arousing suspicions. The humans tended to overlook him as a beast of lesser intelligence. While that normally grated on his nerves, it worked to his advantage now. Most of them only spared a curious glance at him, a couple patted him on the head as he passed and he swallowed his pride and didn't react to the indignant treatment. He approached the medical tent where they held Cloud and he peered around with crafty orange eyes, searching for some way to stall for time.

As he moved around the side of the tent, he heard the doctor inside say: "We don't have the time to try and save this leg and we have to preserve our resources. It's going to have to come off."

Nanaki snarled silently, his heart thumping heavily. _~I knew it! Those lazy, cold-hearted humans! I've got to stop them!~_

A smile curved he feline lips when he moved around the back of the tent and saw the unguarded power generator. He glanced around to be sure nobody was in sight and approached the machinery, eyeing the different cables and labels. He didn't want to risk harm to Cloud by pulling the plug on something required to keep him stable, so he avoided the cords labeled "med equipment". After a few moments, he found one labeled "lights". Without further hesitation he gently closed his teeth around the cord and pulled.

A commotion resulted inside. "Something must have tripped the fuse! Send someone to check the generator, I need light!"

Nanaki quickly slinked beneath a nearby supply truck and waited. After a few moments, a pair of guards came around from the front of the tent and approached the generator. "Huh," one of them said with a puzzled frown as he picked up the cord. "That's weird. Maybe someone tripped on it." He plugged it back into the socket and he briefly looked around with his companion. When they didn't spot anything they shrugged at each other and started back.

Nanaki waited until they were out of sight before he crept out from under the truck and pulled the cord free again. He dove beneath the vehicle and felt a little guilty for getting some amusement out of the cursing from inside of the tent that inevitably followed. He put a paw over his mouth to stifle a chuckle and watched the same guards return again.

"What the hell?" exclaimed the sandy-haired guard who had re-plugged it the last time. His dark haired companion scanned the area with narrowed eyes.

"Wait," said the dark-haired guard. "Maybe we should have a look at it and make sure it isn't the circuit. I've heard a tripped breaker can make the plug pop out sometimes."

"I've never heard of that," the other guard replied doubtfully.

"Well, there's nobody around and who in their right mind would sabotage the medical tent anyway? Let's look just to be sure."

Both men knelt and inspected the generator for a couple of minutes, then shrugged again at each other when they didn't find anything significant. "Maybe someone inside pulled it by accident," suggested the fair-haired one.

"Maybe," agreed the other. He plugged it back in again and they returned to their post at the front of the tent.

Nanaki repeated his earlier actions, this time shaking with silent laughter as the doctor inside cussed up a storm and the guards hurried back again.

"That's it," the sandy-haired one snapped in frustration. "Someone's playing a prank. You can't tell me the damned plug is really jumping out of the socket on its own!"

The dark-haired guard spread his hands in bewilderment. "We've searched the area already and I haven't seen anyone sneaking around from the side. What other explanation is there?"

The sandy-haired one started to reply but closed his mouth and looked at the truck that Nanaki was hiding beneath. "What's that?" he said, looking at Nanaki's reflective eyes. Both of them approached the truck cautiously, drawing their guns.

 _~Oh, no!~_ the lion thought. He considered trying to retreat out the back, but they'd already spotted his eyes and the glowing tip of his tail was an even bigger giveaway. The guards knelt down and peered directly at him, recognition lighting their features.

"Ah-ha…it's Strife's lion friend," the dark-haired one said with a sigh. "Fooling with the cords, were you?"

Nanaki put forth his best effort to look like a stupid beast. "Uh…meow?"

* * *

Tifa felt her heart plummet to her shoes when Nanaki came back under the escort of two guards. The lion's eyes met hers in silent communication, sharing dread.

"You need to keep an eye on this fellow, Miss," the dark-haired guard told her, "he was playing with the power cords by the medical tent and he could have cost someone their life. He might be smart for a lion but he's still a cat and kitties like to play."

She didn't bother to correct him. "I'll be more careful," she said through numb lips. The guards left and Nanaki sat down beside her miserably.

"They are going to amputate," the lion whispered. "I'm sorry, Tifa. I stalled it for a time but they discovered me."

"I…I'm going outside for some fresh air," she said faintly. "Will you walk with me?"

He nodded, snuffling softly.

* * *

Cloud opened his eyes to find himself in a familiar field of flowers. The warmth of sunshine eased the pain out of his muscles and he stood up and stretched, looking around. "Aeris?" he called.

Someone tapped him on the shoulder and he whirled around.

"Boo," Aeris said with a smile, her green eyes alive and sparkling.

"'Boo' yourself," Cloud grinned, swallowing a lump. "Thanks for coming."

Her thick hair shone in the sunlight and her smile was warm. "Of course I came! I don't get to see you very often, these days. I just wish it wasn't because you were hurt."

"Yeah," Cloud scratched his head and almost stumbled as he put too much weight on his right leg. It didn't exactly hurt, but there was an uncomfortable tingle in his thigh and the muscles felt weak. "I did something to my leg, but I can't remember."

She gazed at him with tender concern. "You should try to be more careful, Cloud. But, now you have Sephiroth to look out for you."

Cloud closed his eyes, feeling guilty. "So you know about the two of us."

"Yes. I want you to be happy. Besides, he wasn't the one that brought me here."

Cloud's eyes opened to regard her and he frowned. "Aeris, did you know all along that it wasn't really Sephiroth?"

She looked sad and she nodded.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Cloud demanded. He didn't ask harshly—it was impossible for him to be harsh with Aeris. He just wanted to understand.

"I thought about it," she answered as she picked a flower and examined it, "but I didn't think it mattered. We were trying to stop evil and I never really knew how you felt about him until recently. I can only watch; I've never been able to see what's inside of people's heads and hearts." She met his eyes again and her expression was apologetic. "If I'd have known, I would have told you as soon as I realized what the Sephiroth we were facing really was. I'm sorry, Cloud."

"I understand," he said, "don't be upset. I just wish I'd have known. Maybe I could have done more if I knew he wasn't really—"

"No, you couldn't have," Aeris interjected with a sweet smile. "I know you did everything in your power to protect me, Cloud. Knowing it wasn't the real Sephiroth wouldn't have made you any more willing to protect your friends and the planet, though it probably would have made it easier on you. Please stop doubting yourself."

"Yeah kid, stop blaming yourself for everything that goes wrong in the world," a male voice said from behind Cloud's shoulder. "You know what I think is funny? The guy hardly breaks a sweat against baddies like Jenova but put him in a house and he's down for the count."

Cloud turned his head to look into bright, blue-violet eyes. "Boo," Zack said with a grin, prompting a smile from the blonde. "How are you feeling, buddy?"

"Tired, mostly," Cloud answered. "How about you?"

"Well, there isn't much to feel here by the way of mortal senses, but I can tell you I'm really thrilled about you and Sexyroth."

Cloud blushed, his sapphire eyes going round while Zack and Aeris chuckled. "Okay, first of all, I called him that when I was a frustrated teenager," Cloud defended bashfully, "and second…well, I guess there isn't a second. How much do you guys spy on me anyway?"

"Don't worry, we don't invade your privacy," Aeris assured him with an amused wink. "We don't even really 'watch', per say, except on rare occasions. We just sort of know what's happening with everyone we love."

"Uh…how much do you 'know'?" Cloud dared to ask, wanting to melt into the ground with embarrassment.

"We don't get all of the spicy details, if that's what you're worried about," Zack said with a wink. "What do you take us for, a couple of pervs?" To Aeris, he said; "He's cute when he blushes, isn't he?"

"Very," She agreed, stroking Cloud's flushed cheek with a giggle. "Don't worry Cloud. All we know are basic details. Whatever the two of you do together doesn't make it through. It's against the rules here to peep."

Cloud was relieved. "There are actually rules about that?"

"Well, yeah," Zack said with an incredulous grin. "I mean, can you imagine a bunch of dead people watching you every time you take a dump or a shower or have sex?" He shivered. "There has to be boundaries, ya know."

"Thank goodness for small favors," Cloud muttered. He grimaced as a pain shot through his thigh and his two companions both sobered and looked at his leg.

"Okay, our time is just about up," Zack said as he squeezed the blonde's shoulder. "You've gotta be strong, Cloud."

Cloud regarded him suspiciously. "That doesn't sound good. What's up?"

"Just remember, your friends are there for you and we're watching over you," Aeris said softly.

The pain in Cloud's thigh increased and he had to put all of his weight on his other leg. Comprehension began to surface in his mind and he looked each of his friends in the eye. "Is something going to happen to my leg?"

Zack and Aeris looked at one another, then back at him.

"We don't know," Zack answered with a frown. "It depends on how things go."

"We can't see the future," said Aeris, "only the present. Just remember to fight, okay Cloud?"

"I will," he promised, swallowing. He began to have trouble focusing on them. "I guess I'm leaving now."

"Yeah," Zack said. "Take care of yourself, Cloud."

* * *

Tifa stood at the fence of the encampment, watching the sunset. She absently stroked Nanaki's ears and tried to be brave for Cloud's sake. "We'll make sure he has all the help he needs," she whispered.

"Of course," Nanaki agreed in a choked voice.

Tifa tried not to imagine the saw cutting off Cloud's leg, tried not to imagine the look on his face when he woke up. If only a Cure Materia could have healed it! But the metal shard was filthy and rusty…closing the wound wouldn't have stopped the infection.

Her thoughts froze as she spotted several figures approaching from Midgar on the winding path up the hill. Her heart hammered in her chest and she squinted. There was no doubt about it…the lead figure was Sephiroth. Her friends were coming back…there was still hope!

"Nanaki, do you see them?" she cried, pointing.

"Yes! I'm going!" The lion bounded away, running as fast as his paws could carry him and leaping the fence between two startled guards. He howled as he approached, warning them that all wasn't well.

Sephiroth stopped as Nanaki skidded to a halt before him. "No time," the lion panted, "they're going to remove Cloud's leg instead of trying to fight the infection!"

Sephiroth's eyes narrowed to slits and he plowed ahead. The others followed quickly behind. When they reached the gate, one of the guards began to ask a question and Sephiroth shoved him aside so hard he flew through the air and landed several feet away. The other guards began to react and Cait Sith hollered for them to stand down.

* * *

Dr. Alerick took the bone saw from the nurse and started to lower it to the patient's exposed leg, where the blue line had been marked horizontally across his thigh a few inches above the wound. He heard a commotion in the background but he remained focused on his task.

"Hey, you can't just bust in here!" someone yelled.

The doctor paused briefly in annoyance and took a moment to regain his concentration. As he began to lower the saw again, the curtain surrounding the surgery area was yanked open and a black-gloved hand caught his wrist in a vice-like grip. Dr. Alerick looked up in surprised shock and paled when he stared into the emerald gaze of Sephiroth.

"I suggest you rethink that decision, doctor." The general's cat-like eyes promised him that he had no choice but to comply with the suggestion, unless he wanted to suffer horribly. Behind Sephiroth stood most of the team Strife brought with him, all of them looking grim and threatening.

"It's infected," the doctor tried to explain, "it could go gangrene and kill him."

"It hasn't yet," Vincent observed.

"Amputation will only be used as a last resort," Sephiroth continued in a dark, dangerous tone, holding the frightened man's gaze. "Is that understood?"

The doctor nodded convulsively and Sephiroth released him. The general stared down at Cloud's pale countenance and covered his exposed leg with the sheet, then removed the gas mask from his face.

"I…I'll have him moved to recovery and put on 24/7 observation," the doctor said.

"That's wise of you," Sephiroth murmured. He looked at the rest of the group. "Someone has to be here at all times to make sure they don't get hasty with their medical equipment. Nobody lets a doctor near Strife with any cutting tool unless he'll die without it."

There were certainly no objections from Cloud's friends and Reno felt that he and the Turks were indebted to Cloud and owed him the chance to keep his leg, at least. Even if that weren't the case, he wasn't suicidal. There was no doubt in anyone's mind that Sephiroth would put major hurt on the first person to so much as look at Cloud the wrong way.

* * *

After they moved Cloud to the recovery section of the large tent, a nurse came and gave him a shot of antibiotics, nervously explaining what it was to Sephiroth and waiting for his nod before giving it. She also injected some morphine into his IV to manage his pain before leaving. Everyone was crowded around the area, watching and wondering what was going to happen to their friend. Sephiroth sat by the bed and brooded silently. He didn't join in the soft conversation between the others. He just sat with his eyes lowered and a frown on his face.

After a while, Cloud's lashes fluttered and he stirred. Everyone went quiet as his bright blue eyes opened slowly. His pupils were dilated from the drugs and he blinked with disorientation. Eventually he saw his audience and was able to focus his vision enough to recognize them all.

"Hey," he said faintly.

"Welcome back, Spiky!" Barret said in a gruff voice. The others greeted him warmly as well, except for Sephiroth—who gazed down at him with a slight softening to his features.

"Did we…get the kids and…the Turks out okay?" he slurred, seeming to struggle to keep his eyes open.

"Yup," Yuffie informed with a grin. "Rude's resting in his own tent and the boy that was trapped got out of it with a twisted ankle. You took the worst beating."

Cloud shifted and immediately moaned in pain, reaching down with one hand to touch his damaged leg. He seemed relieved when he felt the limb there and his friends looked at each other, horrified by the realization that he was aware he might lose the leg. Sephiroth impulsively reached out and stroked the blonde's hair out of his eyes. Cloud settled and looked up at him dazedly. His cracked lips smiled gently and he sighed; "You got me out."

"Yes," Sephiroth murmured in agreement.

Cloud's golden brows furrowed at the strained expression on the taller man's face. "What's…what's that look? Were you…worried?"

Sephiroth glanced around uncomfortably. "I thought you might not make it," he whispered.

Cloud gave him a sweet smile. "Did that make you…sad?"

The innocent question and sleepy blue eyes hurt Sephiroth's chest. He nodded silently, all too aware of the audience but unable to refuse Cloud a response.

"Guys, I think we should give them some privacy," Tifa said, her face heating. The others didn't seem to hear her. They were enthralled like soap addicts on a Sunday—except for Vincent, who quietly left the tent.

Cloud struggled to move, groaning softly. Sephiroth put a hand on his chest and gently restrained him, shaking his head. "Don't," the general murmured. "You should rest."

"I have to…tell you something important," Cloud slurred, "I've wanted to say it for a long…time."

"You're heavily medicated," Sephiroth said in a gentle tone, stroking the blonde's hair again. "It can wait for later."

Cloud shook his head weakly and licked his lips, his sapphire eyes fighting to keep focused on the other man's face. "Nuh-uh. I wanna say it now…while I've got…the courage. I know…what I feel."

"Come on, guys," Tifa said again, "this is private!"

Finally agreeing with her that it was getting too personal to listen in, most of them began to leave. Yuffie remained rooted to the spot, her brown eyes wide and tearing up as she watched Cloud struggle to say what was so damned obvious. Tifa grabbed her arm in exasperation and dragged her out, ignoring her harshly whispered protests.

Sephiroth looked over his shoulder and felt relief that they had some privacy. Cloud was squeezing one of his hands weakly when he turned back to him. The blue eyes were earnest even though they were drugged as they looked up at him, and Sephiroth allowed a smile for him alone. "What is it, Cloud?"

"I love you," the blonde said, smiling as if a weight were lifting. "I…I always have, Sephiroth."

Sephiroth lowered his eyes and stared blankly at the floor.

 _~God, Strife…I thought I thought I knew that already but hearing you say it makes me feel dizzy. How did this happen to me?~_

"S-Sephiroth?" Cloud murmured.

Sephiroth raised his eyes from the floor and looked at him again. He tried to say something but he couldn't find his voice. He swallowed, trying again, and Cloud smiled at him.

"It's okay," the blonde whispered, stroking his hand. "I didn't say it…so you'd say it too. I just wanted you to know." Even in his drugged state, he noticed that the right sleeve of Sephiroth's jacket was torn open and he saw the bloodstained bandage wrapped around his lower arm. "You'd better have that…taken care of."

"I will," Sephiroth answered softly.

Cloud sighed and relaxed, looking up at the ceiling with heavy-lidded eyes. "Am I…going to lose my leg?"

A surge of emotion went through Sephiroth and he shook his head. "No."

Cloud's sleepy eyes flicked to him and he smirked weakly. "You're not…lying…are you?"

Sephiroth leaned closer and kept his eyes on Cloud's. "You aren't losing your leg," he said in a firm whisper.

Cloud smiled again, his eyes closing. "I…believe you," he sighed.

Sephiroth continued to stroke Cloud's soft hair with his free hand until he fell asleep. He watched him for a few minutes, then hesitantly lowered his mouth to his and kissed the parted, chapped lips. When he stood up and turned to go, he found that he had an audience comprised of all of the girls and Cait Sith, watching from the entrance of the tent.

"Fuck it," Sephiroth muttered. There were more important things to worry about than whether Strife's tag-team knew he cared about him. Sephiroth spotted the doctor and he motioned him over. The man knew better than to refuse and he obeyed. Sephiroth leaned down and whispered in the man's ear, then pulled back and looked him in the eye, smiling evilly at him and waggling his brows once before clapping him roughly on the arm and leaving the tent.

Cloud's friends witnessed the scene in bewilderment, watching as Dr. Alerick's face turned five shades of pale while Sephiroth walked away from the man. When the general stepped outside to join them, Tifa mustered the nerve to question him.

"What did you just say to the doctor?" She asked.

"I gave him incentive," Sephiroth replied evenly, not pausing his stride. "I'll be back after I eat something."

* * *

-To be continued


	16. The mighty have fallen Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 16

The rescue operation continued the next morning while Cloud fought his infection. After getting a tetanus shot, Sephiroth intended to stay by his side but Tifa reasoned with him that he was needed in the efforts to clear Midgar of mutations and escort civilians out.

"You're the strongest fighter we have," Tifa said to him with blunt honesty. "Cloud probably isn't going to be coherent for a while and he'd want you helping with the rescue. Please, Sephiroth? For him?"

The swordsman gazed down at Cloud's unconscious form, noting the feverish flush to his cheeks. He didn't want to leave the blonde's side but Lockheart was right about one thing; Cloud would want him to help finish the mission and he would say so if he were awake. "You stay here with him, then."

Tifa nodded. "Absolutely. Why don't you keep Cloud's cell phone with you? That way if there are any changes, I can call and let you know."

Sephiroth wordlessly took the device from the young woman and put it safely inside his coat pocket. Beyond caring now whether Tifa saw him display a little affection or not, he brushed his gloved fingers over Cloud's cheek and bent to whisper; "I'm going to finish this for you. While I'm gone, I expect you fight this infection with everything you've got, Cloud. I'll return this evening to see you."

He wanted to kiss his lover but he refrained, his private nature only allowing him to go so far with public affection. Tifa smiled a little as if understanding his hesitation. She turned around in her chair and presented her back. "I won't look," she promised. "Kiss him, already."

Sephiroth rolled his eyes and almost refused, but Cloud murmured in his sleep and his soft, flushed lips parted, destroying his resolve. Sephiroth pressed his mouth against Cloud's and allowed himself a lingering kiss before straightening back up. With that done, he left the medical tent and went outside where the others waited.

"Lockheart is going to stay behind and watch over him," Sephiroth explained in a level voice when they looked at him questioningly. "Who would Cloud normally put in charge when he can't take the role of leader?"

"Barret," Yuffie answered, but they all continued to look at Sephiroth expectantly.

He arched a brow. "What are you all waiting for? Barret, decide your tactics and assign them."

Barret grimaced uncomfortably. "Thing is, you're the General, right? How 'bout you come up with a plan and if I think of somethin' to add, I'll say so."

Sephiroth sighed. His military status was no longer active, so it was technically incorrect for people to keep referring to him as "General". He supposed he couldn't stop them from thinking of him that way, though. "I'm not," he began, but the way they all continued to look at him with respect—albeit grudgingly, made him shake his head. "Oh hell, have it your way. We'll keep to Cloud's original tactic for now, except that Captain Highwind will go with Ms. Kisaragi and Mr. Sith. The Turks are continuing between the boundaries where they left off yesterday, so Nanaki and I will go to the inner metropolis and search there. Any questions?"

Yuffie raised her hand and Sephiroth contained a sigh. "Yes?"

"Why do you keep calling everyone by their surnames? I mean do you really have to be so formal?"

Sephiroth frowned. "Call it military habit. Do you have any questions concerning the tactics?"

She shrugged. "Nope, I was just wondering…GENERAL." She gave him a poor salute and grinned. When he just stared at her with a stern, unyielding expression, she nervously looked away and softly muttered, "Jeez, lighten up!"

"If nobody else has anything further to ask," Sephiroth said with a warning look at the ninja girl, "let's move out."

"At least he doesn't say 'mosey'," Cid remarked as they started down the path to Midgar. He sighed and looked back over his shoulder at the medical tent, missing Cloud and his wimpy terms. "Poor kid. I hope he gets to keep his leg."

"He's strong," Vincent said with confidence, "and Tifa will make sure they don't amputate unless it's the only choice left."

"He isn't going to lose his leg," Sephiroth said firmly, "that's the end of it."

The others looked at him as he walked ahead of them without pausing, impressed by his refusal to even consider the worst. "He seems so certain of that," Nanaki whispered to Yuffie and Cait Sith as the group fell behind to talk without Sephiroth hearing.

"He said somethin' ta the doctor last night after the rest of ye left," Cait Sith whispered back, "the man went as white as a sheet, so my guess is Sephiroth has him convinced his life depends on savin' Cloud's leg."

Barret heard and he chuckled. "I gotta appreciate the way the man looks out for our Spiky, even if I don't get why."

Even Vincent looked at Barret like he was daft. "Whatchoo all lookin' at me that way for?" The dark gunman said.

Cid opened the pack of cigarettes he'd brought with him for the day and shook his head. "Damn, you're slow."

Barret grumbled and checked his cybernetic gun-arm. "No I ain't," he sighed in defeat. "I was just hoping I was gettin' the wrong idea about those two. If you guys have noticed it too, I guess I wasn't."

Vincent shrugged. "Would you prefer Sephiroth hate and resent him? I feel it's better this way."

"Yeah, I guess so," Barret agreed slowly, his dark eyes going to Sephiroth. "But I don't like the thought of what it'll do to Spiky if he ever goes psycho again."

"I can't foresee that occurring," Vincent said calmly. "Sephiroth knows the truth of his origins now and if he were going to go mad again, he'd have done it long before now. What's left on this planet of Jenova is weak and scattered, unlikely to be able to influence him significantly enough to be a threat."

Comforted by Vincent's words and confidence, Barret relaxed. All that really mattered was that Cloud was happy, and it looked like Sephiroth was very protective of him. Not that Cloud ordinarily needed protection, but stricken down as he was it was doubtless a bonus for a man of Sephiroth's influence, reputation and power to be looking out for him.

* * *

Tifa pressed a cool, wet cloth to Cloud's forehead and talked to him about cheerful things. He was delirious with fever and a couple of times he whispered Sephiroth's name. Dr. Alerick came by regularly to drain the wound, check his body temperature and administer pain medication or antibiotics. He frowned every time he examined the wound and Tifa fearfully wondered if the fantastic efforts he and the staff were making would be in vain. By noon they brought an electric cooling blanket to cover Cloud, attempting to keep his fever from getting too severe and cooking his brain.

She only left his side for short bathroom and meal breaks and by the time the afternoon came around she was too sleepy to hold her eyes open. She dozed off in her seat while still holding his limp hand in hers. She didn't know how long she'd been asleep when she was roused by the sound of Cloud moaning softly. She opened her eyes in alarm, but relaxed when she saw the doctor carefully lancing the wound again.

"I know it hurts, Cloud," She whispered, leaning over to kiss his hot cheek as she stroked his hair. "It'll be over soon."

"S-Seph...iroth," He panted.

"He's out helping the rescue effort, sweetie," Tifa explained even though she doubted her friend could understand the words. "He's doing it for you. He'll be back tonight, okay?"

He calmed and his moans faded in volume. She didn't know if he settled down because he understood her reassurances or because he was just too frail and drugged to carry on for long. She made herself watch as the doctor pushed the needle of the syringe in several times at different spots, draining thick, pinkish-white fluid. This time his expression seemed a little relieved and Tifa felt hope rising in her breast.

"How does it look, Doctor?" she dared to ask.

"It appears to have stopped spreading," he responded distractedly, keeping his eyes on his task. "It's a good sign. With any luck the infection will start to recede during the night." He finished what he was doing and put the syringe in a tray, then checked the cooling blanket covering Cloud to be sure it was functioning properly. "I'll be back in an hour to give him another dosage of morphine and examine him again. It's fortunate that this young man has such a strong constitution and will, my dear." His eyes said that he was as much relieved for his own sake as for Cloud's.

Tifa nodded and watched him leave. She smiled tremulously at Cloud when he was gone, squeezing the blonde's limp hand. "Keep fighting, Cloud. You're beating it. Oh, and when you wake up, you have to ask Sephiroth what he said to the doctor to make him try so hard. I'm dying with curiosity."

She couldn't be sure, but she thought she saw his mouth twitch with a brief smile as if he were imagining what the general said and found it funny.

* * *

The team met back up at sunset and headed back to the encampment. Their efforts resulted in a total of thirty-seven citizens rescued, and the closed off sectors of the city were nearly free of mutations. This time it was Cid who sported some rather impressive wounds. While escorting an old couple to the barricade they were assaulted by a pair of panther-like mutations and he'd physically tackled one that had gone for the old woman. As a result he was nursing a bite on his arm and a claw gash in his side. A Cure spell closed the wounds enough to stop major blood loss, but like Sephiroth he would have to get a tetanus shot for it.

When they made it into the encampment they went immediately to the medical tent to check on Cloud and get Cid's injuries looked at. There were more injured people laid out inside now than there had been this morning, but as soon as he spotted him, Dr. Alerick hurried over to Sephiroth an assured him that he was personally overseeing Cloud's care and the increase of patients hadn't interfered with it.

"What is his status?" Sephiroth asked flatly.

"Th-the infection's stopped spreading and I'm hopeful that if we continue treating it as we have been, it should start to recede during the night. He still has a fever but we've managed his body temperature with a cooling blanket, so it hasn't spiked to dangerous levels. W-we've kept him medicated to manage pain and he's resting as comfortably as p-possible." The poor man was sweating and stammering with fear as he quickly explained the situation to Sephiroth.

"Keep it up," Sephiroth said when the doctor finished. The man nodded convulsively and wrung his hands as the silver-haired fighter walked away.

Tifa looked up at the group as they approached and realized one was missing. "Where's Cid?" She asked in alarm as she stood up.

"He's okay," Yuffie explained, "he just had to get a shot and get looked at. He got a little chewed up today but it isn't serious. How's Cloud doing?"

"He's better," Tifa answered as she watched Sephiroth go to his side and lay his hand on his cheek to check his temperature. "The doctor personally drained his wound several times today and they've been keeping him medicated and under a cold blanket. I was told that when his fever breaks his body should have an easier time fighting off the infection."

Sephiroth looked up at her and she saw something in his eyes that might have been gratitude. "I can take over from here," he said.

Tifa frowned. "Aren't you tired after everything you did today?"

"I can rest in the chair," he said. "Strife's infection could take a bad turn again and start spreading in the night."

There was no arguing with him and no matter how neutral he tried to sound, he'd begun to unconsciously caress Cloud's surname the same way he always did with his given name. Tifa held back a grin and warned her friends with her eyes to do the same. Sephiroth's unrelenting dedication to Cloud was a good thing and it wasn't a good idea to make him feel teased over it.

* * *

Sephiroth did take a break for long enough to grab something to eat, use the bathroom and clean himself up as best he could with no real bathing facility on hand. For the rest of the night he sat at Cloud's side and he thought about how diligently the blonde had taken care of him, not long ago. Now the tables were turned and he was trying to cope with the same anxiety and concern Cloud had felt for him.

To the eye that knew no better, Sephiroth was the picture of calm patience. Despite appearances, he felt like a wreck. When Cloud would squirm or murmur, Sephiroth would get up and make him more comfortable or stroke his hair soothingly. When he moaned in pain the general would ease his leg into a different position and whisper to him.

 _~I might as well face it, ~_ Sephiroth thought as he watched Cloud's face for expressions of pain and discomfort, _~I fucking love him. Damn It.~_

His silent curses had no teeth. He tried to be annoyed, tried to be indignant at the emotions rolling beneath the surface, but it was no good. He loved Strife and that was that. What was even stranger was how good it felt to admit it to himself.

 _~Now, if only he would recover and I could get the words out to tell him how I feel. He deserves to hear it; no matter how embarrassing or awkward it is for me to say it out loud.~_

He brooded as he stared at Cloud's sleeping profile, angry with himself for being too weak to express his feelings. He'd never been able to do it properly for Zackary and now he was facing the same struggle with Cloud. He tensed up and narrowed his eyes when he noticed that Cloud's skin seemed to be getting shiny in the lamplight. Sephiroth leaned closer and watched intensely, hoping that his eyes weren't playing tricks on him. After a few moments, his suspicions were confirmed as tiny beads of perspiration broke out on the blonde's fair face. Cloud's fever was breaking.

Sephiroth didn't even realize he was smiling with relief.

* * *

It was even more difficult for Sephiroth to tear himself away from Cloud's side the next morning. Dr. Alerick examined the young man and said that the infection was steadily receding and he pronounced him free of the danger of amputation. The doctor's expression was so relieved that Tifa thought he was going to cry for a minute and she again wondered what sort of "incentive" Sephiroth gave him to save Cloud's leg.

Hearing that he would probably wake up soon, Sephiroth almost refused flat-out to leave his side, but he'd made a promise to Cloud that he'd finish what they started here. Tifa was starting to become adept at reading Sephiroth's subtle reactions and guessing what was on his mind…at least when it came to Cloud.

"I promise, if he wakes up I'll call you right away and put him on the phone," she assured the tall swordsman as he reluctantly started to leave. "At the rate you're going, I'll bet you guys will have Midgar cleaned out and everybody rescued in no time."

He didn't respond to her verbally but on the inside, he was encouraged by her words. He vowed to finish the job as quickly as possible, so that as soon as Cloud was strong enough, he could take him home to his own bed.

* * *

They cleaned out more of the mutations and rescued more survivors while the WRO finished repairing the cracks in the outer walls. The number of corrupted creatures coming in from the wilderness dwindled and by the time Sephiroth and the others finished their daily sweep and started back to the encampment, Shera and the other scientists discovered a way to stem the geyser. Purifying the Mako stream beneath the ground would take longer, but they could take their time doing that once they'd stopped the flow.

"Why'd it attract all those nasties in the first place?" Barret wondered out loud as he walked with his companions.

"Exposure to Mako makes creatures more sensitive to it," Sephiroth answered. "Lower animals already have enhanced senses compared to ordinary humans, so the creatures were first attracted by the corrupted Mako they sensed, then attracted to the prey they sensed inside of the city. Stopping the geyser will end the contamination and animal threats."

"Hmph…maybe you shoulda' been a scientist," Barret commented.

"I'd rather sodomize myself with a rusty bayonet, but thank you," Sephiroth said pleasantly, and Yuffie choked on a hysterical giggle.

Sephiroth was unaware that his pace was quickening as they drew closer to the base. The others refrained from saying anything, not so much to spare Sephiroth embarrassment as to spare themselves his anger. Each of them had learned that on the field he was all business, but when it came to Cloud, his cool exterior cracked just enough to show a glimpse of a man beneath the ice.

He went directly to the medical tent to see Cloud. The blonde's coloring was much improved and he was still sweating out the toxins in his body. His golden hair was damp with perspiration and the cooling blanket had been taken away.

"He hasn't woken up yet, but that's because of the dosage they had him on," Tifa explained. "Dr. Alerick reduced it a couple of hours ago and said he should start coming too pretty soon. The nurse gave him a sponge bath—"

Sephiroth's eyes went hard and sharp and Tifa hastily added, "—with his UNDERWEAR on…she only bathed outside of them. Possessive, much?"

Sephiroth's gaze softened and he looked down at Cloud again. Tifa shook her head and sighed. "Not everyone is out to molest Cloud, you know. Reno told me about the way you attacked Rude—"

"If you'd witnessed the scene from the same angle I did, I have no doubt you would have had the same initial reaction," he cut in defensively.

Tifa chuckled before she could stop herself. "Okay, that's fair. Reno did tell me what it must have looked like, after all. Still, it isn't healthy for a relationship if every time someone touches or looks at Cloud, your first impulse is to slice them open."

Sephiroth glanced up at her with a hint of a smirk adorning his sensual lips. "I'll keep that in mind. Is there anything else you'd like to lecture me about, Ms. Lockheart?"

"Not really, but if I think of something I'll come back," Tifa said with a smirk of her own. "I know you're new to having the whole range of human emotions, so I'll cut you a little slack."

"You're too kind," Sephiroth said dryly.

* * *

Cloud struggled out of sleep, his mind and body feeling sluggish and heavy. He had no idea how long he'd been out or what had happened during that time and he was afraid he'd find himself short one leg. He winced as he opened his eyes, because they weren't adjusted for the light.

Clumsily, he reached down with his right hand and patted gingerly at his thigh, stretching his arm to reach as far as he could. Hot pain shot through the limb when he touched the wounded area and he groaned. He stubbornly lifted his head as well as he could and looked down the length of his body. He saw two feet instead of just one and that satisfied him enough. His head fell back against the pillow and he panted with exhaustion, spent by just that little bit of activity.

He started to close his eyes but he saw Sephiroth approaching and he tried to sit up. The general closed the distance smoothly and held him down by the shoulders. "It's too early to start exerting yourself, Cloud," Sephiroth said firmly. The sensual timbre of his voice was laced with concern and relief. "Your leg is whole and healing."

"Just like you promised," Cloud whispered hoarsely, smiling softly up at him.

"Yes, just as I promised," Sephiroth agreed, unable to resist smiling back at him. "Are you thirsty?"

"Like you wouldn't believe," Cloud croaked.

"I'd believe it, given the way your voice sounds," Sephiroth replied. "I'll go and get some water for you. Don't let me catch you trying to sit up again, Strife."

"Yes sir," Cloud whispered, provoking another faint smile from Sephiroth.

He returned a few moments later with a glass of water. He set it on the floor and pulled the release lever at the top of Cloud's bed so that he could elevate it. Carefully, he lifted the upper half until it was at an angle to prop Cloud up, and he locked it in place and picked up the water. He carefully handed the glass to the blonde, ready to help him if he couldn't hold onto it.

Cloud held the glass in both hands and brought it to his lips, watching Sephiroth with curious blue eyes as he drank.

"Not too fast," Sephiroth cautioned.

Cloud blurted a laugh and lowered the glass, resting it against his lap while he recovered from the fit of amusement.

Sephiroth frowned at him in confusion. "I think that pain medication has you high."

Cloud shook his head. "No, it's not the medicine. It's you."

"Me?" Sephiroth balked. He couldn't imagine anything remotely funny about what he'd said. "Where is the hilarity in drinking slowly, Cloud?"

"I'm sorry," he said, still chuckling a bit, "it's just, I never pegged you as the nurturing type and here you are treating me like a stiff breeze will make me shatter to pieces."

For the second time in his life, Cloud was treated to the pleasure of watching Sephiroth openly blush. Or was it a flush of anger? It was a little hard to tell since the man had bowed his head.

"You've been in a very bad way," Sephiroth reasoned, "I don't want you to relapse, that's all."

"Hey," Cloud murmured, his voice still cracking a little. "Sephiroth?"

The general raised his head and looked at him with uncomfortable eyes and a half-scowl.

"I'm sorry," Cloud finished. "I wasn't trying to make fun of you or anything and I don't mind being babied by you. It just took me by surprise. I…I actually kind of like the attention."

Sephiroth regarded him silently for a moment, then sighed. "You and I aren't a bit alike, Cloud. I literally felt disgust with myself when you told me how I was acting. Personally, it would drive me insane to be 'babied'."

"I know," Cloud smirked. "You made that clear when I was taking care of you. It's okay though. Like I said, it doesn't bother me."

 _~Probably because I've starved you for real affection in this relationship,~_ Sephiroth thought with an alien pang of guilt. Aloud, he said: "That's probably a good thing, then. Until you've regained some of your strength, I'm afraid I'm going to be riding your ass to stay put. After that it's going to be a different tactic."

"Then what?" Cloud asked, "You'll ride my ass with physical therapy?"

"Exactly."

"I think I can live with that." Cloud smiled again and lifted the glass to drink more water. His sapphire eyes didn't leave Sephiroth's face as he thought things over. He almost laughed again when Sephiroth seemed to get uncomfortable under the scrutiny. A memory surfaced in his mind and Cloud's eyes unfocused as he examined it. He put the glass down again and regarded Sephiroth thoughtfully. "Did I…say something significant when I was brought here?"

Sephiroth's pupils expanded slightly and he looked away. "Don't worry about it. You were delirious with pain and heavily medicated."

Cloud smiled and took a deep breath. "Not as delirious as you think. I remember it, but I wasn't sure if I'd just dreamt telling you or if I really did it. I meant every word and I wanted to be sure I actually said it."

Sephiroth looked at him again and failed to mask the expression of surprise and wonder on his face. Cloud didn't look away. "I love you, Sephiroth. It isn't the drugs or the pain or fever making me say it, either."

Sephiroth stared at him and swallowed. Cloud's expression was open and earnest, with his pink lips parted and inviting and a soft flush highlighting his fair face. Sephiroth wanted to kiss him…badly. The general looked around, frustrated that there were people everywhere. His eyes settled on the curtain frame surrounding the bed and he stood up and grabbed the curtain, pulling it around to enclose the bed and give them some privacy.

He couldn't get the damned words to come out for Cloud, but he could show him. He took the blonde's glass of water from him and leaned over him, cupping the back of his head. Their mouths met and Sephiroth kissed the blonde hungrily, putting all of his pent-up feelings behind the action. Cloud's fingers threaded into his hair and he made a little sound of gratitude in his throat as he returned the kiss.

 _~This feels different,~_ Cloud thought. It was more than passion he felt in his lover's kiss…there was real feeling behind it. He felt the sting of tears in his eyes and he put both arms around Sephiroth's neck and held him as tightly as his weakened state would allow. When Sephiroth's lips finally pulled away, he looked down at Cloud with softened green eyes and frowned at the tear that had traced down his cheek. He kissed it away and pulled Cloud gently to his chest, stroking his back.

"The kiss was that horrible?" he whispered to the blonde.

"Opposite of that," Cloud said huskily, nuzzling the other man's chest.

"You'll be getting more after you've rested," Sephiroth promised. "Just don't cry every time I do it or you'll bruise my ego."

Cloud laughed against his chest and planted a kiss there.

* * *

-To be continued


	17. The mighty have fallen Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 17

Cloud was restless and frustrated. Now that the danger of amputation had passed, his friends felt safe enough to leave him in the doctor's care without a guardian and Tifa resumed helping with the search for any trapped people remaining in the city. Cloud felt useless and boredom was eating at him. The nurses gave him some magazines to read but he finished them in a couple of hours.

Doctor Alerick kept a careful eye on him—so careful that Cloud started to get suspicious. He seemed to be paying much more attention to him than any of the other patients and some of them were worse off than he was now. One of the staff brought Cloud a light meal at noon composed of vegetable soup, crackers and a bowl of orange segments. He wrinkled his nose and the nurse scolded him and told him he couldn't start out on steak and potatoes after being so ill. Remembering that he'd fed Sephiroth much the same thing when he'd been sick, Cloud grudgingly cooperated and ate the meal.

While he was eating, the doctor came by to look at his leg. "Don't mind me, this will only take a moment." He lifted the right side of Cloud's blanket and examined the wound with professional, critical eyes. "It's looking better and better," he said after a moment, giving Cloud a reassuring smile. "Soon the infection will clear out enough for us to use a Cure materia and take those stitches out. How is your pain?"

Cloud swallowed a mouthful of soup and shrugged. "Not too bad. It hurts the most when I accidentally move it but most of the time it just throbs and feels kind of hot."

Dr. Alerick nodded. "The heat sensation is due to the remaining inflammation. It should go away in a day or so. If I'm satisfied with your results by tonight I may allow you to get a bit of exercise, but I can't promise anything yet."

Cloud looked at the man thoughtfully. "Doctor, you seem pretty dedicated to getting me back on my feet. Did something happen or do you just really like me?"

The doctor looked nervous and uncomfortable. He cleared his throat and made a show of examining his wristwatch. "General Sephiroth was very adamant that you keep your leg. It was a judgment call on my part and my first choice was to remove the limb to save your life, but he…persuaded me…to wait. Your infection was bad, Mr. Strife. It's important to monitor it until it's cleared up."

Cloud's eyes went blank as he turned the information over in his mind. The doctor left and Cloud watched his retreat, noticing the tense set of the man's shoulders. A combination of gratitude, amusement and concern arose within the blonde as he pictured the conversation between his lover and the doctor that changed the course of his recovery.

 _~Sephiroth, what exactly did you say to him? I guess it shouldn't matter because if it weren't for you, I'd probably be crippled for life. Maybe I shouldn't ask when you come back…maybe I should just be grateful that you care so much and I have both legs.~_

Maybe, maybe, maybe. None of those "maybes" answered the questions that were burning in Cloud's mind.

* * *

When evening fell, Nanaki came bounding into the medical tent before the others. He placed two paws on the edge of Cloud's bed and bumped his head against the blonde's shoulder in a feline gesture of affection. Cloud chuckled and patted the lion's back.

"You're pretty chipper today," Cloud observed, "I guess that means everything went pretty well."

"It did," Nanaki agreed, "and I'm relieved to see you looking so well, too. Does your leg pain you?"

"Not as much as yesterday and this morning. How's everyone doing? Nobody got hurt this time did they?"

Nanaki shook his great head, the decorative beads and feathers tied to his main swaying with the motion. "Fortunately, no—at least, not badly. Sephiroth was a bit too enthusiastic cutting aside some debris to free a trapped family and he's sporting a small cut on his forehead. Other than that, everyone conducted their part unscathed." Nanaki gave Cloud a knowing look. "I think he's eager to be done with this, so that he can take you home."

Cloud felt his cheeks heat up a little and he bit his bottom lip and lowered his eyes. "Yeah. I got that impression too."

"I'm happy that your new mate is so devoted to you, Cloud," Nanaki continued, provoking a wide-eyed look from the blonde, "I never imagined it would be him, but you're well suited to each other. He and the others should be here soon. I'm famished, so please excuse me while I go and eat." With that said, Nanaki bumped his head against Cloud's shoulder again and bounded away.

"'Mate'?" Cloud echoed as he watched the lion go. "That sounds kind of weird." He supposed the term meant the same thing to Nanaki as "lover", "boyfriend" or "spouse" but it took a little getting used to.

He shifted into a more comfortable position and winced when it caused a throb of pain in his leg. When he looked up again, Cait Sith was hopping into the tent and heading toward him. "Lookin' good, lad! I've got some news for ya."

Cloud grinned at the cat. "Go ahead."

"We've just about finished and the WRO can handle the rest. Thanks to you and the others, the casualties weren't high."

"Humph, I barely did anything," Cloud mumbled.

"That's not true," Cait Sith argued. He hopped off of his mog and onto the bed and putting a consoling paw on his shoulder. "Ya came and ya nearly got yerself killed tryin' to help others. In fact, someone wants to see ya and express their gratitude." He whistled and his mog turned and motioned to someone at the tent entrance.

The two teenaged boys he'd helped rescue came in with a middle-aged woman that looked a lot like the one who'd been trying to free his friend's foot. "I want to thank you for getting my son Thomas and his friend safely out of there," the woman said with an expression of gratitude. "If it hadn't been for you, who knows what would have happened!"

"Ma'am, all I did was end up trapped with them," Cloud said with embarrassment.

"Nonsense. They told me it was your quick thinking that kept them from being crushed," she insisted. "And I also found out you're a volunteer. It takes a big heart and a lot of courage to put yourself in danger like that with no thought of reward, young man."

"I…I used to live here," Cloud excused lamely, "It really wasn't a big deal." He was blushing profusely and the woman gave him an adoring look, leaving little doubt that she thought he was darling.

The boy named Jenkins stepped forward. "Thanks for what you did, sir. If you hadn't gotten my foot free and pushed us in that hole, we'd be dead meat now."

His friend Thomas nodded. "Yeah. I'm sorry you got hurt so bad trying to help us. We wanted to come and thank you earlier but you weren't awake yet."

"Don't worry about it," said Cloud, "I'm just relieved you two are okay. Stay out of the condemned zones from now on, eh?"

"Oh, they will," Thomas' mother said severely, making both teens wince. "Come on boys, it's dinner time and I'm sure the young man would like to rest and talk to his friends." To Cloud, she said, "Thank you again for all that you did, Mr. Strife. I hope you feel better soon."

Cait Sith was grinning at him and swishing his tail as the family left. "Well now lad, that ought ta have made ya feel pretty good."

"I'm not comfortable with that sort of thing," Cloud said, averting his eyes.

"What, praise for doing good? Gratitude for savin' lives? Och Cloud, yer a stubborn one!"

Cloud spotted Sephiroth approaching and his pulse quickened. Cait Sith noticed the change in his expression and turned a bit. Seeing the general approaching, the cat grinned. "Guess I'll be going now, to give you two some privacy." He jumped back onto his mog and went on his way.

Cloud noticed the thin cut on the upper right side his lover's forehead as he approached and he was relieved that it seemed very minor. Sephiroth's hair was damp and he wasn't wearing his gloves. Cloud assumed he'd taken some time to clean up before coming to see him. He wouldn't have cared if he was coated from head to toe with mud, but he'd learned early on that Sephiroth was a very hygienic person.

Sephiroth looked Cloud up and down, pleased to find that he'd regained his coloring and lost the glossy look to his eyes. He closed the curtains around the bed for privacy and started to sit in the chair, but Cloud wriggled his body to the opposite side of the narrow bed and patted the spot in front of him.

"Come on, nobody can see," Cloud smirked when his lover hesitated. "I've been bored out of my mind all day and I want some of that chest."

Sephiroth followed the blonde's gaze to the portion of his chest exposed by the opening in his uniform. When he looked back up, he noticed that the sheet covering Cloud from the waist down was tenting in an obvious way. Sephiroth smirked and shook his head. "Clearly you're feeling more like yourself again. Would it help if I simply left my chest with you every day, Cloud?"

"If only you could," the blonde sighed, forcing his eyes back up to Sephiroth's face again. He patted the empty spot on the bed again. "I'm waiting."

Sephiroth pretended a sigh of annoyance and pulled his boots off before sliding onto the bed and resting his back against the raised part. Cloud snuggled up to him and laid his cheek against his chest, tracing the criss-crossing leather straps of the harness with his fingers. Sephiroth gingerly put his arm around him, supporting him carefully so that he wouldn't jostle his leg and hurt him. He closed his eyes and gave into the temptation to nuzzle Cloud's soft hair, admitting to himself that he loved the way the blonde fit against him. Cloud began to place soft butterfly kisses on his chest and Sephiroth felt his groin beginning to stir as a result.

"Hey, I've got a question for you," Cloud murmured between kisses.

"Do you?" Sephiroth replied huskily, distracted by the feel of Cloud's lips caressing his skin. He closed his eyes and tried the trick Cloud had taught him when they first arrived. It wasn't doing any good—he found it impossible to think un-sexy thoughts when a hot looking, helpless blond was kissing and sucking on his chest.

"Mmm-hmm," Cloud hummed, licking a nipple. He grinned when Sephiroth's breath caught and he glanced down and noticed that the man's black pants were swelling nicely at the crotch. It was good to know that the "problem" Sephiroth had experienced when they first arrived wasn't just a one-time deal. "How did you 'persuade' Doctor Alerick to save my leg?"

"What makes you think I had anything to do with it?" Sephiroth said evasively.

Cloud's kisses migrated from the taller man's chest to his neck. He sucked on the skin there briefly then moved his mouth to his ear and nibbled the lobe. "Just a feeling I've got," he whispered into the ear. He fondled a nipple with his fingers and it pebbled immediately. He followed up by scraping the earlobe teasingly with his teeth again. "So, what did you say?"

"Cloud," Sephiroth whispered unsteadily, "That's…very distracting." His eyes rolled and fluttered shut as the blonde blew gently into his ear and traced the outer shell of it with his tongue.

"That's the point," Cloud chuckled. He stopped teasing the other man's nipple and dragged his hand down, pressing lightly as he caressed Sephiroth's chest and abdominal muscles. He paused at the thick part of the harness, tracing the skin surrounding it with his fingers before dropping his hand to the rising bulge between his thighs.

At this point Sephiroth lost what was left of his common sense and tact, utterly fascinated by the feel of his companion's hand resting over his hardening sex. "I told him that if he failed to save your leg, I'd cut his off to replace it," he blurted.

 _~Shit, I didn't mean to say that. Cloud is such a boyscout; I'm probably in for a lecture now. So, this is what it's like to be at the mercy of the "smaller head".~_

Cloud paused and pulled back to look at him with wide eyes and Sephiroth braced himself for criticism. He was therefore taken by surprise when the blonde's mouth curved into a crooked smile. "You really said that?"

Sephiroth nodded warily. "It was effective, wasn't it?"

Cloud huffed a laugh and coughed, feeling terrible for finding it funny. "Damn, no wonder the poor guy always looks like he's about to shit himself."

"He was going to cripple you, Cloud," Sephiroth reminded him evenly.

Cloud sobered a little and looked him in the eye. "This is gonna sound really cheesy," he said softly, "but I think what you did is probably the most romantic gesture anyone's ever done for me. Go ahead and make fun of me and call me girlish if you want to."

"I won't do that. I was prepared for a lecture, actually," Sephiroth murmured, reaching up to trace his mouth with his fingertips. He sucked in a sharp breath when Cloud's lips parted and drew his fingers into his mouth. "What I AM going to call you is a horny little blonde," Sephiroth revised breathlessly.

Cloud felt Sephiroth's stiffening cock spring fully erect beneath his hand, practically bucking against it. He sucked on the other man's fingers and swirled his tongue around the sensitive pads at the tips, daring to squeeze the impressive length that his hand rested over. Sephiroth's emerald gaze was hot on him and his fingers slid deeper into Cloud's mouth, then withdrew and did it again.

 _~I should stop this,~_ Sephiroth thought even as he continued to thrust his first two fingers in and out of Cloud's suckling mouth. He was transfixed by the sight of the blonde's lips closed around his fingers and the way his fathomless blue eyes stared directly into his. He was humbled to hear a soft groan burst from his mouth and his heart pounded so fiercely he thought it would break through his ribcage.

Cloud forgot about his injury and tried to throw his leg over Sephiroth's hip. The blinding flare of pain in his thigh rudely reminded him of where they were and how they got there. A ragged moan reverberated in his throat before he could stop it and Sephiroth quickly withdrew his fingers from his mouth and held him supportively.

"I'm okay," Cloud panted, upset that he'd fucked up such a beautiful moment by being careless. He clenched his jaw hard and fought the pain, his own erection deflating quickly.

"No, you aren't," Sephiroth stated firmly. He rubbed his back until the pain and tension faded, then eased himself out of the bed and carefully repositioned Cloud in the center. He looked down at Cloud's disappointed face and brushed his lips over his sweat-beaded forehead. "What was it that you said to me when you first brought me to your house, Cloud? I seem to recall something about my being mortal, and not to push myself."

"Yeah…okay," Cloud grumbled, nearly pouting at him. "I just wanted—"

"I know," Sephiroth interrupted, pressing his fingers against those sinfully tempting lips to shush him. The curtains didn't prevent people from hearing what was being said and Sephiroth didn't want to give the medical staff and other patients a commentary. "I do too, but not here and not until you've healed more."

Cloud grinned playfully and tried to suck the other man's fingertips into his mouth again.

"You little shit," Sephiroth muttered, pulling his hand safely out of reach before he could succeed. He glared severely at the blonde, who was chuckling silently. "I really don't think you appreciate what a fine line I'm walking between self-control and a total loss of it, Cloud."

Cloud sobered and his erection returned. Sephiroth's jaw was tense and he now had a faint sheen of perspiration making his flawless skin glow. He was breathing heavily, that stunning chest rising and falling as he stared down at him with hungry eyes. Cloud knew suddenly that the only thing stopping Sephiroth from taking him right now was his injury and the audience surrounding them.

"I'm sorry," he whispered sincerely, reaching out to cover one of the taller man's tense hands with his. "I keep forgetting you haven't had time to adjust to…that. I was just playing."

"Your 'playing' is my bane, Strife," Sephiroth warned, still devouring him with his eyes. "And right now, you're far too breakable to endure the consequences."

Cloud smirked a little and lowered his gaze. "I know. I guess I should thank you for keeping your head. Obviously I lost mine."

Sephiroth leaned over him and kissed his lips briefly. "When you're healed," he promised.

Cloud caressed him with his eyes and refrained from asking him to describe exactly what would happen when he healed. He knew what Sephiroth had in mind but the thought of hearing him say it in no uncertain terms made him restless with desire. It would have to wait, for now.

They changed the subject and talked about the progress in Midgar until the doctor came and nervously said that it should be okay for Cloud to walk around for a little while, as long as someone supported him. Sephiroth helped Cloud into a robe and took him for a brief walk, helping him to exercise his muscles without putting weight on his damaged leg. When the blonde started to get winded and sweaty he took him back to his bed and sponged his face and neck off to cool it.

Sephiroth stayed in the chair at Cloud's side all night long, dozing lightly at various intervals while his lover slept.

* * *

"He said THAT?" Tifa exclaimed the next morning when she had breakfast with Cloud and he broke down and told her what he'd said to the doctor. "That's…that's…" She sighed and shrugged, grinning. "You know, I can't even pretend to be surprised."

"You're lousy at it," Cloud agreed, sipping his orange juice.

The doctor came by again and cleared his throat politely. "Your infection's been driven back enough for us to use Cure materia on your wound. After that you can go home as soon as you like, though I strongly recommend that you have your regular doctor give you follow-up examinations until you've regained full use of your leg."

"Thanks, Doctor," Cloud said with relief. He was more than ready to get out of this place and have a real bath and sleep in a real bed. He thought about apologizing to the man for what Sephiroth put him through, but changed his mind. Now that he thought about it, Dr. Alerick deserved the terror that Sephiroth had put him through. The man had wanted to take his leg off without even trying to save it first. Considering that he'd almost crippled Cloud for life, a few days of mortal fear was a small price to pay.

"I'll be back with the materia," the doctor said, but Tifa stalled him and held up her arm meaningfully, flashing the bangle on her wrist that already had several green materia and some blue ones in it. "Or, Ms. Lockheart can do the honors," the doctor finished with a little smile. "I'll just remove the stitches first and let her take over from there." He opened a case he'd been carrying and took out a pair of special clippers and tweezers.

"Gladly," Tifa said. She waited while the doctor pulled the sheets aside to expose Cloud's leg and winced in sympathy as he cut and tugged out the stitches, one at a time. Cloud didn't flinch and he rolled over carefully when prompted so that the doctor could get the stitches on the back of his thigh. When that was done, the doctor helped him to roll onto his back again and nodded at Tifa.

"Hold still, Cloud," she said.

He did, and she held her hand flat, hovering an inch or so over the wound. She closed her eyes and activated the materia. A green-white glow spread from her hand, intensifying and sparkling as it covered Cloud's leg. He sighed with relief as the throbbing pain subsided and the skin closed. She kept the spell active until the wound was replaced with a thin white scar on both sides. With time, thanks to his enhanced biology, the scar would fade further and be hard to notice, if it didn't vanish altogether.

"Done!" Tifa said with delight, hugging Cloud. "How does it feel?"

He experimentally raised his knee. There was no pain but the muscle in his thigh felt tired and weak. "Pretty good," he said. "Just sort of tired."

"Be careful with how you use that leg for a while," the doctor advised. "The muscle's been weakened so it would be easy to strain it and make it lock up. I can recommend some stretches and light exercise for you to start out with. If you were an ordinary patient I'd say it might take several months for you to regain full use of it, but for you it wouldn't surprise me if it only takes one or two. Just don't overdo it and you should be fine."

* * *

Cid drove Fenrir back to the Highwind and loaded him up for Cloud. Reno stopped in to see him before they left, surprising him with a pair of pants. "Yours were trashed," He explained after tossing the pants to Cloud and getting a surprised look from him, "so I stopped into the safe zone of town and did a little shopping. These look about your size and style, yo?"

Cloud held the pants up and looked at them. They were reinforced navy blue cargo pants, loose enough to wear easily without being overly baggy. The material was supple but tough, designed for comfort and efficiency. They were also a major expensive brand. "Holy…Reno, I can't take these, they must have cost—"

"Shaddup and take 'em," The redhead insisted with a smirk. "Go in style for once. It's a gift from the Turks, for helping us out."

Cloud flushed and nodded. "Thanks, man. I'll try them on."

"Can I watch?" Reno asked with a grin.

Cloud stared at him and worked his mouth.

"Kidding!" Reno laughed. "You're taken and I'm not into suicide. I just like to fuck with you. Take it easy, Blondie." He walked away, whistling a tune.

Cloud watched the redhead go, confused and surprised. "Gay?" he muttered to himself. Then he shook his head. "Doesn't matter…I'm ready to get out of here." He pulled the curtains closed and was mildly thankful that Sephiroth hadn't been there to witness Reno's flirtation, whether it had been genuine or not. He didn't want to test how possessive his lover was if the result could end up being Reno having to have his head surgically removed from his own ass. The guy was annoying most of the time but he had his good points.

Cloud stumbled a little as he pulled off his underwear and reached for the clean ones he'd packed, thankful that Tifa's idea to bring extra clothes for herself inspired him to do the same and toss some extra clothes of his own in his duffle bag just in case.

"Cloud?"

The blonde stopped with the fresh boxers clutched in his hand. "You can come in," he said with a smirk, even though he blushed.

The curtains parted and Sephiroth stepped through. He stopped in his tracks when he saw Cloud's state of undress, his eyes scanning his body. He almost started toward the blonde but then he stopped and hastily shut the gap in the curtain behind him. "Showing off, Strife?" he said huskily.

"Only for you," answered Cloud, smiling shyly at him.

Sephiroth grinned, seeing that Cloud's boldness only went so far. The slighter young man held his boxer shorts over his groin, hiding it from view. "How can someone have such slutty sensibilities and be so bashful at the same time?" Sephiroth purred softly as he closed the short distance between them. He put his hands on the blonde's hips and slid them around to cup his ass. He lowered his mouth and kissed him, pushing his tongue past his lips aggressively.

Cloud groaned softly into the other man's mouth, taken by surprise. He'd expected an appreciative look, maybe followed by a brief reserved touch and a command to get dressed so that they could go. Judging by the erection he felt poking him in the belly, Sephiroth was losing his patience as well as his reservations about others knowing what they were doing. Cloud let the other man's tongue dominate his mouth and he threaded his fingers into his long, silken hair. Sephiroth's hands squeezed his ass and pulled him harder against his body.

"Gaia, you're a temptation," Sephiroth purred against his lips as he broke the kiss. He reluctantly pulled away and averted his eyes, turning his body too late to hide his hard-on. "Get dressed before I humiliate us both and our first time goes down on public record," he said roughly.

Cloud snickered at his words and wisely pulled his boxers on. He nearly fell when he put his left leg through because his right one wasn't strong enough to fully support his weight. Sephiroth heard him grunt with exertion and saw him stumble from the corner of his eye. The tall swordsman was at his side quickly, putting an arm around his waist to support him.

"Thanks," Cloud said softly, trying to ignore the feel of the leather-clad body pressing against his naked skin. He hurriedly put his other leg through the hole and pulled the boxers up, then sat down on the bed to put his legs into his new pants.

 _~I should have done this with the underwear, but that kiss made me stupid.~_

Sephiroth watched him slide his legs into the pants and as he was pulling them up, the silver-haired man spotted the pricetag still attached to the waist. "When did you find the time to shop, Cloud?"

Cloud froze and Sephiroth noticed that he paled a bit when his pretty blue eyes lifted to regard him. "Uh…Reno brought them before you came in. They're a gift from the Turks to replace the ones I ruined."

"How…considerate of them." Sephiroth said in a low voice. He saw the flash of panic in his lover's eyes and he remembered Tifa's lecture from the other night. Sephiroth sighed and shook his head. "Don't look so worried, Cloud. I can control my jealous streak, even if I can't stop it from rearing its ugly head. I'm not going to decapitate the loud redhead or his friends."

Cloud tried to conceal the relief he felt but the smirk Sephiroth gave him said he failed miserably. He stood up and pulled the pants over his hips, zipping the fly and buttoning them before limping over to stand before Sephiroth. He looked up at him earnestly and said; "I don't mind you feeling possessive. I kind of like it, actually. Just so long as I don't have to worry about you punching people out for looking at me or making stupid accusations, we're cool."

"Fair enough," Sephiroth agreed, cupping his chin for a brief kiss. "Ms. Lockheart already had this discussion with me and she made it clear that resorting to jackassery to cope with my jealousy is highly unattractive and immature."

Cloud burst into laughter, surprised that Tifa had gathered the nerve to lecture the great Sephiroth. "She's got more balls than a drill sergeant!"

"That, she does," Sephiroth agreed. "In fact, I've come to respect all of your companions' cunning and resolve." Anyone that could stand up to him without flinching tended to earn Sephiroth's respect. "Now, let's get your sweater and jacket on so that we can leave this place and take you home."

* * *

-To be continued


	18. The mighty have fallen Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 18

When they returned home, Cloud was again surprised by how attentive Sephiroth could be. Cloud tried and failed to climb the ladder to board the airship, his injured thigh too week to support his weight. Sephiroth ordered him to climb onto his back, right in front of everyone.

"Get on your back?" Cloud asked dubiously.

Sephiroth nodded and crouched low to make it easy for him. "Hang onto my shoulders and hug my waist with your legs. I'll carry you onto the ship."

When Yuffie giggled with delight, Sephiroth glared at her and she subsided.

"We don't have all day, Strife," Sephiroth insisted firmly, "Unless you'd rather spend the journey in the cargo hold with your motorcycle, this is the quickest and most efficient way to get you on board. Now climb on."

It made perfect sense and under other circumstances nobody would have thought anything of a person giving an injured comrade a "piggy-back ride" onto the ship, but because it was Sephiroth it seemed out of the ordinary. Not only that but everyone was aware by now of what his and Cloud's relationship had developed into.

Cloud shrugged and smiled, lifting Sephiroth's flowing hair aside and over the front of his left shoulder so that he wouldn't pull it when he climbed on. Charity wasn't a common act for Sephiroth and Cloud could tell by the tension he felt in the other man's body as he climbed on that he was doing his best to remain dignified under the scrutiny of the others.

"Thank you," Cloud whispered into his ear, hoping that expressing his gratitude would cushion the blow to Sephiroth's pride. He felt Sephiroth's tension ease a little.

"Hold tight," Sephiroth instructed the blonde as he straightened up and went to the ladder.

"Yo, I'll climb up behind you just in case Spiky loses his grip," Barret offered, "I can catch him if he falls."

Sephiroth almost refused but his pride wasn't worth the risk of Cloud getting hurt, so he nodded. Cloud clung to him like a sloth as he approached the ladder and climbed it. The blonde's breath tickled his cheek and Sephiroth found it distracting enough that he entertained thoughts of turning his head and kissing him. He was too disciplined to act on it but silently he vowed to help his lover regain his strength as quickly as possible so that they could finally consummate their relationship like other couples.

Once he got him on board, Sephiroth didn't allow him to climb off his back right away.

"What are you doing?" inquired Cloud as the tall swordsman grasped his legs to keep him from sliding off.

"I'm taking you to a bunker so that you can lay down until we land outside of Kalm," Sephiroth explained in a voice pitched low for Cloud's ears alone. "You're still as weak as a kitten, Cloud. Rest is first part of the recovery process and until I'm satisfied that you're strong enough, you're getting plenty of it."

Cloud smirked against his lover's cheek and rolled his eyes with good-natured exasperation. "Yes sir," he whispered into the general's ear, nibbling the lobe briefly before anyone could see. He felt Sephiroth shiver in response and he forced down a delighted chuckle.

"You're asking for it, Strife," Sephiroth whispered back, only half-joking.

* * *

When they touched down outside of Kalm Cid drove them into town, with Fenrir secured in the back of the truck. Cloud had to sit on Sephiroth's lap to make room for Tifa, knowing that his thigh wasn't in the condition to support her weight and having her sit in Sephiroth's lap was out of the question for both she and the general. They might have gained respect for one another but Tifa and Sephiroth were a long way off from developing anything remotely like the easy, trusting friendship she shared with Cloud.

When they pulled into the driveway of Cloud's house, Sephiroth and Cid unloaded Fenrir from the truck while Tifa helped Cloud into the house. She considered putting him straight to bed but it was the middle of the day and she didn't want to punish her friend with boredom on top of everything else. Instead, she ushered him to the den and onto the couch, pulling the thick brown throw off the back of it and draping it around his shoulders.

"Tifa, this is getting a little embarrassing," Cloud protested, watching her as she took some wood out of the wrack beside the fireplace and began to stack it strategically on the grill.

"What? It's chilly and I don't want you to get a cold on top of everything else," she said absently as she twisted the gas knob and gingerly lit the starter pipes. "You might as well face it; you're going to get a little babied for a while, until you're stronger. Now, find something you want to watch on TV and I'll see what you've got in the kitchen for dinner."

"You're not cooking my dinner too," insisted Cloud stubbornly.

"You're right…that'll be Sephiroth's job," returned Tifa with a wink. "I'm just going to set it up for him before I go."

Cloud sighed and clicked the remote, surfing the channels until he found a comedy movie. He heard Sephiroth and Cid come in from the door leading to the garage in the hallway and he looked up at them as they walked into the living room. "Did you lock the garage?"

"Yes," Sephiroth answered. He inspected Cloud for a moment and was apparently satisfied that he was resting and comfortable. "I'll be in the kitchen, putting dinner together." With that said, he left the room.

"Well kid, looks like they've got everything handled for you," said Cid as came to a stop in front of Cloud. "You take it easy and give me a yell if you need anything. I've gotta get going so I can drop the rest of the posse off and get home."

"Thanks, Cid. I'll call everyone at the end of the week."

* * *

Sephiroth made a pot of thick beef and vegetable stew for dinner that night and he was even gracious enough to thank Tifa for the help before she left. Cloud didn't complain about the meal even though Sephiroth was sure he was tired of soups and stews.

"Tomorrow I'll pick up some groceries and you can have something more solid," Sephiroth said to him as he handed him one of the steaming bowls he carried.

"I don't mind this," Cloud smiled, "it's got some substance to it and it'll actually fill my stomach, unlike that thin crap they kept giving me in the medic tent. I appreciate it."

"You don't have to thank me every time I do something for you, Cloud." Sephiroth looked a bit uncomfortable. "Taking care of you isn't…that is, I don't…oh, hell."

Cloud scooped up a spoonful of stew and blew on it, struggling not to grin as Sephiroth wrestled with expressing his feelings. "I know," Cloud said, sparing him the trouble, "I just want to be sure you know I appreciate all of it, even if I get a little annoyed once in a while. I promise I'll try to be a good patient."

"Good," Sephiroth replied pleasantly. He took a bite and when he finished chewing and swallowing it, he said; "If there's anything in particular you'd like tomorrow, tell me."

"Mmmm," hummed Cloud with sudden inspiration; "you know, I could kill for some pizza."

Sephiroth turned his head to give him a disapproving frown. "You want junk food."

Cloud smiled crookedly and shrugged. "It's not 'junk food', really. Its bread dough with meat and veggies and cheese layered on it…that's not so junky. If you get it for me for lunch I promise I'll eat a healthy dinner of your choice." He gave him a soft-eyed look that he knew Sephiroth had a weakness for.

Sephiroth's lips curved into a faint grin and he sighed. "You're very persistent, Cloud. Very well, since you've followed my instructions with minimal complaint, I'll buy pizza for lunch. I suppose you want everything on it?"

"Well, yeah. Everything except pineapples and anchovies, I mean." Cloud studied him curiously. "Sephiroth, have you ever even tried pizza before?"

"No," the silver-haired man replied immediately.

"Aw, man…you should try it. You don't know what you're missing!"

Sephiroth's immediate reaction was to say "no" firmly, but he paused and considered it for a moment. He hadn't known what he was missing when it came to sexual arousal or pleasure either, but experiencing Cloud's hand on his most intimate parts had been highly enjoyable. "I'll try a bite," he finally said. "At least it isn't hot dogs," he muttered in closing.

"Ooh, hotdogs," Cloud said dreamily.

"Absolutely not," countered Sephiroth in a firm voice, "I KNOW that's junk food and until your body has flushed out remaining toxins and regained the lost nutrients, you aren't touching that garbage."

Cloud chuckled at him, having expected him to say something of the sort. At least the man wasn't trying to forbid him from ever eating hotdogs again. While health conscious, Sephiroth evidently wasn't one of those people that tried to force others to live by his preferred diet standards. "Okay," Cloud conceded, "I won't have any hotdogs until I'm recovered. You're pretty strict, you know that?"

"Over matters like this, I certainly am," agreed Sephiroth without compunction.

* * *

Sephiroth didn't push him to do any exercises that afternoon, knowing that he was tired from the journey and rest was most important in the beginning. Instead he worked him through the stretches that the doctor had outlined, to keep recovering muscle tissue pliant. They bathed together before retiring and Cloud was anxious with anticipation of what the night would bring.

"You seem restless," Sephiroth observed as he sponged the blonde's back off. "I would think you would be exhausted by now." He finished rinsing his back and guided him to lean back again. Cloud did so, scooting backwards until he was sitting between the taller man's spread thighs. Sephiroth felt his groin stir when the blonde's body pressed against it and he grimaced, silently reminding his privates that this wasn't the time for playing.

Cloud smiled softly as he felt his companion's impressive sex begin to firm up against his backside. He sighed and closed his eyes, relaxing against Sephiroth's chest. Honesty was the best policy, after all. "I guess I'm a little excited," he said, turning his head and tilting it back to kiss the other man's jaw. "I want to make you feel good tonight, Sephiroth."

Sephiroth swallowed, understanding that by "feel good", Cloud meant he wanted to make him come for the first time. "I don't know if that's such a good idea," he murmured as he lathered up the sponge again and reached around the blonde's front to bathe his chest. "It's still new to me and I don't trust myself to control it. You're not in the condition for rough handling, yet."

Cloud sighed as the taller man scrubbed his chest and arms, caught between pleasure and annoyance. "You act like a little pleasure is going to turn you into a rapist," he said, closing his eyes. "I know you'll be fine, you just have to trust me. We can start off slow and get you a little more used to it before we get into anything too raunchy, okay?" He felt Sephiroth's groin harden to a completely erect state against his backside and he smiled, his own body responding the same way. "Besides, if you were going to throw me down and pound me into the floor, you'd have already done it by now."

Sephiroth chuckled softly against the blonde's cheek, brushing his lips over his temple. He dropped the sponge into the water and let his hands glide over Cloud's chest and stomach muscles, tweaking his nipples in the process. "You have no idea how tempting the thought of 'pounding you into the floor' is, Cloud." He rubbed his fingertips in a circular motion over the slick nubs, making them fully erect and drawing a little gasp of pleasure from his companion. "Very well…if you insist on easing this pressure in my crotch tonight, I won't stop you. I just want you to be aware of the possible consequences."

Cloud craned his neck to kiss Sephiroth heatedly, letting him know without a doubt that he was aware and quite willing to deal with any consequences that might result from his playing.

* * *

Agreeing that he was ready for this and actually doing it were two different things, Sephiroth discovered. As night fell and they climbed into bed, Cloud immediately put an arm around his waist and began kissing him. His soft lips caressed his mouth, chin and jaw, his tongue occasionally licking in an almost dainty manner as he went. Sephiroth's arms tightened around the blonde and he closed his eyes to focus on disciplining himself. His cock practically leaped to hardness in his pajama pants the minute Cloud started and he was growing increasingly anxious as the other man began to explore his body with his hands.

"Relax, Sephiroth," Cloud whispered between kisses, "Just go with it. You can't control absolutely everything and being turned on isn't a crime."

The general forced his muscles to relax a little and Cloud smiled against his neck. He knew it was hard for Sephiroth, who had been molded and honed into the perfect Soldier, leading a highly disciplined life from childhood to maturity. It must be frightening for him, to have his body react this way without having any control over it. Cloud wanted to teach him that it wasn't terrible, that feelings of lust and pleasure weren't inherently wrong or humiliating. He intended to introduce Sephiroth to his own sexuality as gently as possible and wipe the fear and wariness away for good.

Cloud let his hands skim over the hard muscles of Sephiroth's bare chest, still kissing, nibbling and licking at his neck and jaw. He moved slowly and gradually, so as not to startle him. Things weren't the same now as they were before, when exploration of this sort didn't result in arousal for the other man. Cloud murmured his name huskily and gently fondled his nipples, eliciting a soft groan from the silver-haired man. His uninjured thigh was pressed gently against Sephiroth's crotch and he felt the member buck a little in response to his touches. Subtly, he began to rub his thigh against it, letting the friction of the pajama material stimulate it.

Sephiroth's fingers squeezed Cloud's hip and his breath quickened. His stomach tensed as the blonde's hands stopped teasing his nipples and slid down over his abdomen. Cloud whispered more reassurances to him, talking to him like he was a frightened animal. At any other time Sephiroth might have been insulted at the treatment, but given what was happening and the fact that it was Cloud doing it, he was oddly comforted by the soft, encouraging words and gentle touch.

"Easy," Cloud murmured when his hands reached the waistline of the cotton pants and Sephiroth gave a little start. "I'm not going to pull them down yet. Shhh, it's okay."

Sephiroth wanted to say something sarcastic but he realized that it was too late to pretend he wasn't nervous or even a little frightened. Cloud's stunning blue eyes caught his and held them as the blonde retracted his thigh and slowly dragged his hand down with his palm open. He whispered more nonsense as he rested the hand over Sephiroth's straining erection and held it there for a moment. The general's lips parted and he resisted the urge to buck his hips into the touch, fascinated again by the feel of his lover's hand resting comfortably on his hardened groin.

Just as Sephiroth's tension began to fade again, Cloud's hand squeezed the thick hardness of his dick through the material and slowly began to stroke along the length. Sephiroth shuddered and his breath caught. He impulsively squeezed the blonde's hip again, not daring to do more than that. Cloud's eyes stayed locked with his as he massaged him gently and carefully.

"Do you like it?" Cloud inquired as he examined Sephiroth's tense, handsome features. The swordsman nodded wordlessly, his breath hitching unevenly as he tried to regulate it. Cloud kissed his parted lips softly as he stroked him, brushing his mouth back and forth over the other man's. Sephiroth's tongue pushed against his lips aggressively and Cloud parted them and allowed entry. He made a sound of excited arousal in his throat as Sephiroth's tongue dominated his mouth. It was probably safe to move on, now that the silver-haired man seemed distracted enough.

Sephiroth went still when he felt his erection spring free as Cloud tugged his pants down over his hips. He tried to brace himself but the feel of the blonde's fingers wrapping around the naked girth of his stiff cock still startled him enough to make him gasp. Cloud murmured to him again, encouraging him to relax. He did so as well as he was able, but it felt so different to have his sex fondled when it was hard and sensitized, he couldn't relax completely. Cloud began to stroke the length with slow, gentle motions, gripping firmly as he did so. The blonde held the kiss, his tongue caressing Sephiroth's in an unhurried, sensual manner. He paused his stroking at the head of Sephiroth's length and rubbed his thumb over the slit in the tip of the glans, making it dribble and causing Sephiroth to forget how to breathe.

Cloud noticed that his companion's breath had halted and he broke the kiss to look into his bewildered eyes. The pupils were dilated wide with dazed pleasure. "Sephiroth," Cloud whispered gently. "Breathe."

In response, the taller man drew a ragged breath and shivered. His parted lips were swollen from kissing and a flush was creeping over his sculpted cheekbones. "That's it," Cloud encouraged, pressing light, gentle kisses on those lips. "Just take it easy." He massaged the glans for a bit, enjoying the way it made Sephiroth's body tremble. Precum began to seep steadily from the slit as Cloud stimulated the tender urethra opening, lubricating it. "Doesn't that feel good?" purred the blond, releasing the other man's eyes to kiss his neck and nibble his earlobe.

"Fuck," Sephiroth answered unsteadily, his hips instinctively beginning to rock forward for more. "Cloud…it's…the pressure is…" He struggled for breath as the stimulation brought him closer to orgasm. He wasn't ignorant about the process of male ejaculation but his lack of personal experience made it difficult for him to completely understand that he was about to have one. Strife had a look of comprehension on his fair face and he changed his tactics again, resuming his earlier actions of stroking up and down the shaft…only this time, he did it faster. Because Sephiroth had done the same thing to bring a partner to orgasm before, he understood what Cloud's objective must be. Panic rose in his chest as the pleasure and pressure built and he heard himself moaning uncontrollably.

Cloud sensed his lover's distress and he slowed his stroking a little, kissing his panting mouth soothingly. "You're fighting it, Sephiroth. That tightness and pressure you're feeling is normal." He watched the beautiful expression of pleasure and lust on Sephiroth's face and it was very difficult for Cloud to keep being gentle. "God, you're so fucking beautiful. Let it happen, baby, it's okay to let go. I want you to come." Calling another man "baby" had never been a habit of Cloud's but Sephiroth made him so damned horny, it didn't feel cheesy or out of place at all. He felt the long organ he was fondling grow even harder in his grip and he guided Sephiroth onto his back and sat up, so that he could have full use of both hands.

With his free hand, Cloud cupped his panting lover's heavy balls and squeezed them experimentally, paying careful attention to Sephiroth's reactions so that he could figure out just how much pressure was ideal for him. He smiled when the general's hips lifted off of the mattress and his hands grabbed fistfuls of blanket. He watched Sephiroth toss his head, his throat muscles working as he groaned and panted. The general's silver hair fell across his face as his restless actions tossed it and his sleek, toned body began to shine with perspiration.

"Sephiroth," Cloud sighed, his heart swelling with love even as his groin ached with desire. He relentlessly continued, ignoring the faint moans of denial his companion made as he tried to fight the inevitable. Sephiroth groaned his name raggedly and his emerald eyes snapped open wide as he lost the battle. Cloud kept watching his face, reveling in the feel of his balls tightening in his hand and his cock twitching hard. He was taken by surprise when a thick glob of semen splattered his chin and he looked down with raised eyebrows, amazed that Sephiroth had spurted high enough to hit his face from that distance.

 _~Oh, I shouldn't have looked down,~_ Cloud had time to think as he was treated to the sight of another impressive, thick spurt of creamy fluid shooting up at him. He was too enthralled to consider the wisdom of averting his face or shutting his eyes and he regretted it a second later when the semen hit him directly in his left eye. It stung like hell and temporarily blinded him, but Cloud refused to let his own stupidity ruin the moment and he hastily wiped his eye and chin with his pajama sleeve and looked at Sephiroth.

Sephiroth was trembling and gasping as the orgasm played out, licking his lips and tossing his head. His eyes were shut and he had the most beautiful expression on his face that Cloud had ever seen. "I love you," whispered the blonde as he slowed his massage to match the tapering of the climax. When Sephiroth was spent and his cock began to soften, Cloud gave it one more loving, gentle pull before releasing it and stretching out beside him. He kissed the general's gasping mouth and combed the wayward strands of hair out of his eyes.

Sephiroth caught his breath and forced his heavy lids open to regard Cloud. He never knew that bliss like this could be possible and he was deliciously exhausted from the release. Somewhere in the back of his mind a fresh spark of anger ignited, now that he knew what Hojo had deprived him of. From a scientific and military point of view he understood why the man thought he'd make a better fighter if he never experienced this sort of pleasure, but the knowledge only made him hate him more.

Not wanting it to spoil the moment, Sephiroth shoved the new anger aside and focused on Cloud's fair, handsome face. The blonde was smiling at him—not smugly, but with tender happiness. The only odd thing was that he was squinting his left eye almost as if he was winking at him and that was a puzzling contrast to his expression of selfless joy. Sephiroth reached up and traced his features with his fingertips.

"Now I…understand why you…were so livid about…what Hojo did," Sephiroth murmured breathlessly. "What's…the winking about, Cloud?"

Cloud flushed a little and chuckled. "I'm not winking; I'm squinting. There was sort of a little accident when you…er…"

Sephiroth smirked and groaned softly as what he was saying dawned on him. The first time he'd pleasured Zackary that way, he'd experienced the pain of getting shot in the eye with flying spunk because he was too fascinated by the sight of him coming to maintain a safe distance. "I got you in the eye," he chuckled. "Lovely."

"It's not a big deal," Cloud grinned, "it was more my fault than yours. You shot a pretty amazing load there and I didn't have enough respect for it." His amusement grew as Sephiroth's face reddened with a rare, deep blush. He kissed him again, feeling a little guilty for embarrassing him. "Hey, it was impressive. Nothing to be embarrassed about. It just means you're healthy."

"Or that I had too much pent up, for too long," retorted Sephiroth wryly as he pulled Cloud down to lay against his chest. He stroked the blonde's back and nuzzled his hair, unsurprised by how sleepy the experience had made him. "I think one good turn deserves another," he purred, letting one hand slide down Cloud's body. He deftly slipped his hand under the waistline of the smaller man's pajamas and ran it along his hip and around to the front of his pelvis.

Cloud groaned as Sephiroth's hand found and gripped his swollen erection. He wanted to tell Sephiroth that it wasn't necessary because he'd already given him pleasure several times before without getting any in return. He couldn't bring himself to do it as the taller man's strong, calloused hand began to fondle him skillfully. Selfish as it was, Cloud accepted the offer and allowed Sephiroth's other hand to tug his pants down. He kissed him languidly and whimpered against his mouth with eager, thankful pleasure.

Cloud was so aroused already by the time Sephiroth started on him that it didn't take long for him to peak. The general propped himself up and urged Cloud onto his back while he jerked him off, intending to finish it with his mouth. Cloud moaned loudly and shakenly when Sephiroth drew his straining, dripping flesh into his mouth and began to suck. The general only made three strokes with his mouth before his lover was calling out a warning to him. His soft laugh was muffled by the hard flesh in his mouth as Sephiroth thwarted the blonde's effort to push him away and sucked his cock hard and deep into his throat. He held Cloud's hips down firmly as the blonde writhed and bucked, his hot seed spurting down Sephiroth's throat.

Cloud closed his eyes and drew a shaken breath as Sephiroth licked and sucked him clean. It felt great, and he stroked the taller man's silken hair and relaxed, docilely allowing the treatment. Sephiroth's warm mouth and tongue were gentle on his softening member, giving him pleasure without the painful intensity that often occurred from stimulation after orgasm.

"That feels so good," Cloud sighed, continuously running his fingers through Sephiroth's hair. The other man kept going, until Cloud began to wonder if he had any intention to stop. The blonde flushed as the pleasure grew from soothing to sexual again and the sensitivity in his groin eased. "Uh, Sephiroth…you're gonna make me hard again," Cloud whispered as he felt his dick starting to swell in the other man's mouth.

Sephiroth purred, his mouth vibrating around Cloud's cock. The blonde's mouth fell open and his hands trembled in his lover's hair as he steadily gained another erection. Sephiroth withdrew his mouth to the tip and the tip of his tongue sought out the tiny hole, testing its sensitivity. Cloud shuddered and his blue eyes lost focus as the zip of sensation shot through his groin and pelvis. "S-Sephiroth," he moaned as he lifted his head and looked down at him, warning him one final time. The other man responded by pinning his hips down again to hold him steady and Cloud understood that Sephiroth wasn't going to stop sucking him off until HE was damned good and ready to. How often Cloud came as a result apparently wasn't the deciding factor for when he stopped.

"Oh, Shiva," blurted Cloud helplessly as Sephiroth's tongue flicked against his urethra over and over again, sending shocks of pleasure through him. His head fell back against the pillow and he stared blankly at the ceiling, panting. One of the general's hands released its hold on his hip and reached down to tickle his balls, making Cloud want to rotate his hips like a whore in heat. The other hand pushed against his thighs one at a time, silently ordering him to spread them further. It was a little difficult to do so with the left one but Sephiroth helped him. When that was accomplished he placed his palm flat on the blonde's pelvis to hold him still while he pleasured him.

"Sephiroth," Cloud groaned as the other man found a rhythm and took his dick in and out of his mouth, "I…oh…I want you to fuck me…I want you so bad!"

Sephiroth paused for a moment and came close to granting Cloud's request, but he strictly reminded himself that any extreme stretching or strained positions might damage the blonde's healing thigh muscles. He allowed the throbbing member to slide out of his mouth and he murmured, "In good time, Cloud. I promise." Then he resumed, admiring the sound of his companion's breathy voice as his ministrations made Cloud moan and whimper.

He'd have loved to insert a finger or two into the blonde's ass and give his prostate a good rub, knowing from past experience that the combination of oral and anal pleasure could drive a man mad. Unfortunately he had no lube on hand and he wasn't about to use the drying come on his own belly as a substitute. Sephiroth was a firm believer in safe sex and while he was almost positive that both of them were clean, he intended to practice caution and avoid mixing fluid beyond saliva and semen until they could both be tested. He made a mental note to pick up some lube when he went grocery shopping in the morning.

As it stood, Cloud got off just fine without any anal fingering. After several minutes his toes curled and he inadvertently pulled Sephiroth's hair painfully as he came down his throat a second time. The silver warrior didn't complain about it because it wasn't a regular occurrence for Cloud to be that careless and the blonde immediately gasped an apology and let go.

Now that he'd given Cloud a fuller experience of pleasure than the first time, Sephiroth was satisfied and he eased off and released him from his mouth. He smiled sensually as he guided the blonde's thighs to close again and pulled his pajama bottoms back up. Realizing that his own blue pajama pants were still down around his thighs, Sephiroth pulled them up as well and stretched out beside Cloud again, pulling the covers over them both. Still catching his breath from the last explosive orgasm, the blond snuggled up to him and kissed his chest before resting his cheek against it. He threw his right leg across the general's hips and sighed, closing his bright eyes with contentment.

"You'll make me pass out, one of these days," Cloud mumbled sleepily.

Sephiroth grinned and squeezed him gently before closing his eyes.

* * *

-To be continued


	19. The mighty have fallen Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 19

As promised, Sephiroth stopped at the pizza parlor the next day on his way home from getting groceries. Cloud smelled the delicious aroma of freshly made pizza as soon as his lover came through the door and his mouth watered.

"Thank Ramuh! I wasn't sure you'd actually pick one up for me!" He exclaimed as he limped into the kitchen behind Sephiroth.

The silver-haired man was amused. Like Zackary, Cloud sometimes reminded him of an eager wolf pup. "Of course, Cloud. I don't make promises I have no intention of keeping." He tried and failed to contain his chuckle as the blonde reached for the box while he was trying to set it on the counter. "Give me a chance to put the damned thing down, Strife! One would think I was starving you to death!" Sephiroth struggled to balance the bag of groceries in one arm while setting the box of pizza on the counter.

 _~What in hell do they put in these things, pheromones? It does smell good but Cloud is acting like he hasn't had a bite to eat in days.~_

Sephiroth watched in bemusement as Cloud pulled the lid of the box open. Just as the blonde was reaching to grab a slice, the silver warrior remembered something and he lightly smacked his hand, drawing a startled yelp from him.

"Wash your hands first."

"Oh," replied Cloud with a tiny flush. "Right. You must think I'm a pig."

Sephiroth chuckled helplessly again. "No, on the scale of hygiene and a love for pizza, I think you're a fairly typical young man. I'd have let it slide if it weren't the sort of food you have to eat with your hands." He began to put the groceries away, smirking with amusement as Cloud hurried to comply so that he could start eating.

"Okay, can I eat now?" Cloud said as he finished rinsing his hands and wiped them off on the clean dishtowel. Sephiroth nodded absently, still occupied with storing the perishables he'd bought in the refrigerator. Cloud pulled a triangular slice away from the pizza, watching the melted cheese stretch for a moment between the piece and the rest of it and sniffing appreciatively at the delicious scent. He paused with the slice halfway to his mouth and considered Sephiroth as the other man closed the fridge and began to put the rest of the groceries in the pantry and cabinets.

"Why don't you take the first bite and see what you think?" Cloud offered, stepping toward his lover and holding the steaming slice up.

Sephiroth paused with a jar of stock cubes in one hand, eyeing the pizza slice as if it were a new species of animal or plant life he'd just discovered.

"Come on," Cloud tempted, waving the slice under the taller man's nose so that he could get a good whiff of the aroma. "One bite won't hurt you. Live a little. If you don't like it, I'll never ask you to eat anything new again."

Sephiroth sighed and placed the chicken stock on a shelf in the pantry before nodding. Cloud was right about one thing, one bite wouldn't hurt him and it would obviously make the blonde happy for him to try it. At least he knew the ingredients they'd used were fresh, since they'd put it together right in front of him and he had to admit, it smelled good. He leaned forward and down, letting Cloud feed the bit to him since he hadn't washed his hands yet.

 _~It's like trying to get a wild horse to eat an apple out of your hand,~_ Cloud thought as he watched Sephiroth's straight, white teeth close delicately over the pointed end of the slice. He smiled as the other man seemed to realize what a tiny portion he was taking and took more into his mouth, biting off a sample that would give him a bit of pepperoni, mushroom and onion instead of just cheese and sauce. He chewed carefully and a faint expression of surprise bled into his handsome features.

"Good, huh?" Cloud asked, grinning at him.

Sephiroth finished chewing and swallowed, licking his lips. He nodded hesitantly. "You win, Cloud. It's…very tasty."

"Told you. Why don't you wash up and grab a slice? I can't eat the whole thing by myself anyway and it's never as good reheated." He was getting the hang of phrasing his requests so that they didn't come out as an order, especially when asking Sephiroth to do something he wanted him to do. He didn't want to inadvertently force him to do anything against his will.

"I think I'll do that," answered Sephiroth. "You're a bad influence, Cloud." The blonde gave him a bright smile and he couldn't help but smile a little in return. Every time Cloud smiled at him that way it felt like a ray of warm sunshine bathing him, and those smiles occurred with greater frequency these days. It was a little unsettling for Sephiroth sometimes—not because he didn't enjoy the way it made him feel but because he was so unused to it.

 _~You're so easy to please, Cloud. It's interesting that I find myself doing little things each day just to make you smile at me like that. You're going to make me soft if I'm not careful.~_

* * *

The recovery process was hard, but with Sephiroth's encouragement Cloud was making rapid progress. Actually, "encouragement" wasn't the word that Cloud would have chosen to use for the general's participation. Sephiroth fell into the role of his coach with natural ease and as soon as he was strong enough to endure it, he pushed the blonde to the edge of exhaustion each day. Cloud was strongly reminded of his days as a cadet, with the one difference being that this time he enjoyed the reward of going to bed with the general at the end of the day and touching him in ways that would have made several of his old regiment partners jealous.

The only thing that frustrated Cloud was that Sephiroth wouldn't allow their sexual exploration to go beyond foreplay. He wouldn't even let him give him a blow job, insisting that if he put his mouth on his cock, he'd lose control. Cloud couldn't get it through the man's thick skull that he WANTED him to lose control, but he consoled himself knowing that the sooner he regained most of his strength in his leg, the sooner he'd get what he wanted. It did help that Sephiroth was so good with his hands and mouth and truthfully, Cloud didn't go a day without at least one orgasm. Still, he was getting impatient.

When his leg was strong enough for him to get up and down the stairs on his own, they moved the therapy sessions to the attic where there was more floor space. There was a gas heater there but Cloud never had to light it despite the cold of winter growing harsher, because it only took him a little while to warm up from the exercises. After two weeks had passed Cloud grew used to working up a sweat during his physical therapy sessions, so one afternoon he decided to just wear a pair of cut-off blue jean shorts for his exercises.

He didn't think anything of it until he climbed the stairs to the attic where Sephiroth waited for him. "Okay, I'm ready to go," Cloud informed as he ascended the last few steps into the attic. Sephiroth didn't respond and he looked up with a frown, wondering if something was wrong.

Sephiroth was wearing the outfit composed of dark brown jeans and a black sweater today, looking stunning as usual. He stood perfectly still, his serpentine eyes moving up and down Cloud's form. His expression was difficult to read and Cloud wondered if he thought the cut-offs were a dumb idea.

"I know these aren't exactly the first choice people would make for working out in the winter," Cloud explained, "but I always get so hot by the time we're finished, so I decided to wear these instead of the sweatpants. Does that make sense?"

Sephiroth worked his throat and tried to force a reply past his lips. _~Fuck, Cloud! How do you expect me to concentrate on this when you're giving me eye candy? Do you even realize how…hot…you look in those little shorts?~_ He kept staring, taking in the sight of the blonde's muscle definition in his arms and chest, his tight stomach and his lean-muscled thighs and legs. He had to struggle to keep his eyes from locking on the fine golden treasure trail that started below Cloud's navel.

"Sephiroth?" Cloud frowned. "Come on, you're making me feel stupid. It's not that bad!"

 _~Oh you clueless little dingbat. You think I'm staring at you because I think you look silly?~_ Sephiroth wondered if he had any drool in the corner of his mouth and he cleared his throat and made himself speak aloud. "The shorts are fine if they make you comfortable, Cloud. Why don't you get the ankle weights by the barbells and we can begin?"

Cloud shrugged and turned around to comply. Sephiroth was very thankful that the blonde couldn't see his face because when he saw the way those short little cutoffs fit so snugly and perfectly over Cloud's firm, tight ass his eyes nearly bugged out. The silver-haired man clamped down on a groan of lust and imagined closing the distance and squeezing those tempting mounds. He hoped Strife never wore those things in public—if he did he probably caused accidents. Sephiroth almost huffed a laugh at the mental image of passersby tripping over themselves or getting into car accidents as a result of staring at the blonde.

 _~Control yourself!~_ Sephiroth silently growled, _~You've seen him naked at least a dozen times! A pair of short cutoff jeans can't be your undoing! Just focus on the task at hand.~_

It was soooo easy to rationalize that the sight of Cloud's tempting body clothed in a pair of skimpy shorts shouldn't make him lose control. Unfortunately Sephiroth's body had a completely different opinion from his mind and when Cloud bent over to pick up the ankle weights, the general learned how uncomfortable a full hard on was in form-fitting jeans. Desperate to regain some control, Sephiroth slapped himself across the face and he was none too gentle about it.

Cloud heard a loud smack behind him as he retrieved the ankle weights and he turned around to see what caused the noise. "What was that?" he asked as he started toward Sephiroth with the ankle weights in hand.

"What was what?" Sephiroth inquired, hoping that his voice sounded neutral. The slap hadn't helped. Now he had a stinging red palm mark on the left side of his face to go with the painful boner. The only good thing about the tightness of his pants was that it restrained his erection, making it less obvious. Thankfully his sweater was also long enough to partially cover it as well, but if Cloud looked close enough the secret would be out.

Cloud stared at his lover as he approached, wondering why his voice sounded strained. "I heard a smack or something." His blue eyes narrowed with concentration as he noticed that one side of the taller man's face looked red. "Sephiroth, is that a…a hand print on your face?"

"There was a mosquito," Sephiroth quickly fabricated.

Cloud furrowed his golden eyebrows. "In the winter?" he sounded doubtful.

"They don't completely die out," Sephiroth insisted, "especially if they find shelter. It was a mosquito."

Seeing the way his green eyes were blazing, Cloud decided not to press the issue. He had no idea why Sephiroth was so temperamental today. By the look of the handprint he'd smacked himself really hard. Either the man really hated mosquitoes or something was bothering him. "Okay then," Cloud shrugged. He seated himself on the bench under the small attic window and strapped the weights to his ankles, completely ignorant of Sephiroth's eyes raking his spread thighs and his crotch. When he looked up, the general was staring hard at the window.

 _~Man, what's with him today? He's so tense and it looks like everything is pissing him off!~_

Aloud, Cloud said; "I'm ready to start. Don't drill me too hard today, alright?" He smiled playfully up at the other man, having no idea what thoughts his innocent words invoked in Sephiroth's mind.

 _~Don't drill you too hard, Cloud? You'll be lucky if I make it through this without shoving you against the wall and wrecking you today.~_

Sephiroth cleared his throat and forced a little smile, not wanting to rouse his lover's suspicions more than he already had. "I make no promises. Do your stretches first and then we'll start on the sitting calf lifts."

Cloud nodded and got off of the bench, and sat on the floor with his legs straight out in front of him. Sephiroth watched as he reached for his ankles and held the position. He silently counted until a minute passed and then he instructed Cloud to change positions for the next stretching exercise. He immediately regretted it as the blonde spread his thighs wide and stretched forward, touching the floor with his palms.

Swearing silently at himself, the general clenched his jaw and tried not to pay attention to the position Cloud was in. He was so preoccupied with restraining himself that he forgot to count, and after a while Cloud lifted his head and frowned up at him.

"You didn't say anything about increasing the time on this stretch. How long has it been?"

Instead of answering him, Sephiroth slapped himself hard across the right side of his face. Cloud's eyebrows shot up to his hairline and his jaw fell open with bewilderment. "What the hell was that?"

"Another mosquito," Sephiroth lied, now sporting matching handprints on both sides of his face.

Cloud stopped stretching and closed his legs, casting a glance around the room. "Where the hell are they coming from and why are they only going for you? Are you sure it's not just in your head?" Sometimes Cloud felt phantom bugs crawling on him after watching a nature show, so he reasoned it was possible that Sephiroth was imagining it.

"It's possible that it was only my hair brushing my face," Sephiroth agreed, thinking that if he kept insisting he was getting attacked by invisible bugs Cloud might call the doctor on him. "It isn't important. Time for the first set of leg lifts, Cloud."

"Are you sure you're okay?" Asked the blonde in concern as he got to his feet and sat on the bench again. "You seem kind of distracted."

"I'm fine," Sephiroth assured him—though truthfully he was starting to worry that the force of his erection would pop the button on his jeans. "Begin."

The worry hardly faded from Cloud's expression as he obeyed and began to lift his ankles one at a time, raising each one until his leg was straight and holding the position for a moment before dropping it and repeating with the other one. He did ten of those and then did ten more raising them both at the same time.

As Sephiroth watched over the exercise he felt the tightness in his groin lessening a bit, and he breathed a sigh of relief. It lasted all of five minutes, until Cloud moved on to his next exercise and lay flat on his back. Sephiroth groaned inwardly. He'd forgotten about this part. His job in this exercise was to hold Cloud's ankles and physically guide him to raise his legs.

"I think we can skip this one today," Sephiroth announced in a tight voice.

Cloud looked up at him with his lips parted in confusion. His skin was already glowing with a fine sheen and unbeknownst to him, he looked particularly inviting. "Why do you want to skip it? It's one of the most important ones!" He propped himself on his elbows and bent one knee. "Seriously, what's the matter with you today?"

 _~Shitshitshitshitshit…MUST YOU LAY THAT WAY, CLOUD? FOR FUCK'S SAKE, YOU'RE KILLING ME!~_

"Nothing, I just think you deserve an easier set today—but if you insist…" He shrugged and approached the young man, forcing his breathing to stay as steady as possible as he knelt beside him and took his left ankle in his hand, pulling the leg straight.

Cloud shook his head at him and lay back again, clearly not buying his claim that nothing was wrong. "I just want to get my strength back to normal as fast as I can," he said, gazing up at the ceiling as Sephiroth slowly guided his leg up. His sapphire eyes flicked to the taller man and he smiled softly at him. "I think you know why I'm in such a hurry."

That was IT. He couldn't take it anymore. Sephiroth slid his hand down from Cloud's ankle to his knee and used his other hand to do the same with the opposite leg. While the blonde stared up at him in confusion, he pushed his knees up and apart and positioned himself between his legs.

"Goddamn it, Cloud!" Sephiroth growled, descending on the smaller man like a storm as he cupped his ass and shoved his pelvis between his legs.

Cloud registered the feel of his lover's hard bulge pressing firmly against him as Sephiroth's mouth claimed his aggressively. If he were a cartoon character, the blond would probably have a light bulb drawn over his head at the moment because it finally clicked: Sephiroth hadn't been angry at all…the afternoon's strange behavior was all because of sexual frustration! Before he could stop himself, Cloud laughed into the other man's mouth.

Sephiroth stopped kissing him, tearing his mouth away and looking down at him with thunder in his eyes as he panted heavily. "It amuses you to drive me insane, Strife?"

"No," Cloud answered easily, "It amuses me that you tried so hard to control your sex drive. Stop being so fucking noble, already!"

"Oh, I intend to," answered the taller man in a low, dangerous voice. "These damned cutoffs…you're too…damn it, Cloud!"

Cloud's eyes lit up. "Oh, so you like the shorts, then?"

"You little shit. You lied."

Cloud shook his head. "No I didn't. I really wore them for comfort but if I knew they'd get this reaction I'd have worn 'em a lot sooner."

Anything else Cloud might have said was cut off by Sephiroth's mouth. He combed his fingers through the other man's hair and groaned softly as his tongue entered his mouth and ravished it. Sephiroth rubbed his swollen crotch aggressively against Cloud's growing bulge, making the blonde buck his pelvis for more. Cloud gasped sharply against the punishing kiss when Sephiroth lifted his body off of him a little and squeezed his crotch with one hand. Cloud undulated against the touch, encouraging it and silently begging for more.

The sound of the doorbell ringing downstairs made them both freeze. Cloud groaned as Sephiroth's mouth released his, but instead of pulling away the general simply changed locations, nipping and sucking on his throat. Cloud arched his neck and turned his head to the side, closing his eyes with pleasure and desire. "I…should answer that," he said breathlessly.

"Whoever it is, they can come back later," murmured Sephiroth against his skin. He sucked hard on Cloud's neck and rubbed his swelling crotch firmly, making the blonde moan and writhe against him.

The doorbell rang again and Cloud tried to get up. "It might be…something important…"

"More important than this?" Sephiroth asked in a lascivious tone. He nibbled Cloud's earlobe, catching his earring in his teeth and tugging gently before releasing it.

"Nothing's more important than this," Cloud amended, grabbing Sephiroth's ass spontaneously and urging him to press harder against him.

"Cloud," the other man groaned, biting his neck hard enough to leave marks. He licked the spot soothingly a second later, bringing his lust to heel as much as he could.

"I've got lube in the bedroom," Cloud gasped. "I can wait here if you want to get it and just do me on the floor."

Sephiroth paused and drew back to look at him, realizing he was serious. It shocked some sense into him and he stopped fondling the blonde's bulge to bring his hand up and trace his features. "As tempting as that is, Cloud, I think I'd rather our first time be in a bed. You're…not just someone for me to rut against."

Cloud blushed with pleasure. Sephiroth's statement was the closest he'd ever come to telling him he loved him. "I think we can manage that," he whispered.

* * *

Somehow Sephiroth ended up naked before Cloud—which confused the hell out of him considering that the only article of clothing the blonde was wearing were those tight little shorts. While the general was trying to figure out how Cloud had gotten all of his clothes off so fast, the blonde shoved him backwards onto the bed with surprising strength, straddling his hips before he could recover.

"You don't waste time, Strife," Sephiroth mumbled against the slighter man's mouth as he kissed him.

"I'm not giving you a chance to change your mind," answered Cloud in a breathy voice.

"Doubtful, with you sitting on me in those shorts," Sephiroth chuckled. He jumped a little when Cloud's hand sought his erection and began to stroke it.

Realizing that he ran the risk of scaring Sephiroth out of it if he moved too fast, Cloud forced himself to slow down. He kissed him again, this time more gently and slowly. "Feel good?" he murmured against the other man's mouth as he stroked the length of his cock.

"You know it does," Sephiroth sighed, flexing his hips with the touch. His hands glided over Cloud's chest, the fingers teasing the nipples briefly before moving on to his stomach. He was more nervous on the inside than he let on. He knew all about foreplay and preparation but when it came to taking someone, he had no experience. He was afraid that he either wouldn't be good enough or that he would hurt Cloud.

Deciding to swallow his pride for the sake of his lover's pleasure, Sephiroth reached down and put his hand over Cloud's stroking one, stilling it so the he could concentrate on what he had to say.

"Is something wrong?" Cloud asked, feeling his heart sink.

Sephiroth shook his head. "No, don't worry. I just need to ask you to do something for me."

Cloud nodded, regarding him with hungry blue eyes. "Anything you want, Sephiroth."

The general closed his eyes and groaned aloud. Cloud smirked when he felt the man's heavy sex buck in his hand. The green eyes opened again to look up at him and he was a little taken aback by the sincerity in them.

"I want you to be completely honest with me when we're doing this, Cloud. As much as I hate admitting I'm not the best at everything, I'm going to be relying on instinct and your guidance rather than any experience. Will you do that for me?"

Cloud's lips parted with surprise. It must have been very difficult for Sephiroth to say those words and ask for instruction. "I promise," Cloud answered, kissing him softly. Deciding it would be a good idea to have the lube and condom out and ready for use, he leaned to the side and reached out for the nightstand, pulling the small drawer open. Keeping his eyes on Sephiroth's, he took the tube in his hand and placed it on the right-side pillow, then reached in again for a condom.

Cloud frowned as he felt around. His fingers were coming into contact with the bare surface of the drawer, but no condom packages.

 _~Oh, shit…please, don't tell me!~_

Cloud leaned further over, to the point where Sephiroth had to grab his waist to keep him balanced. He peered into the drawer desperately, hoping that there was at least one condom hiding in a corner or something. It was empty.

Sephiroth saw the look of denial on Cloud's face, followed by a crestfallen expression as he looked down at him again. "Are we missing some protection, Cloud?"

"Yeah," Cloud muttered sourly, practically pouting. He looked at the clock and took note of the time, then brightened again. "There's still time. The pharmacy doesn't close for another fifteen minutes!" He dismounted Sephiroth and started for the door.

"Er…Cloud, are you really going to run outside in freezing weather in nothing but those shorts?" Sephiroth inquired.

Cloud looked down at himself, having forgotten that it was cold outside due to the fireplace and heating vents keeping the bottom floor of the house fairly warm. "Oh…can I borrow your trench coat? I'll just put that on and slap my winter boots on. That should keep me warm enough and nobody will see what I'm wearing underneath."

Sephiroth had no objections to him borrowing the coat but he was doubtful that it was enough to keep him warm with only the cutoffs and a pair of boots underneath. "Maybe we should just wait—"

"NO!" Cloud yelled the word. "Just stay right there, I'll be right back!"

Sephiroth dissolved into soft laughter as Cloud bolted out of the room before he could argue. He heard him moving around frantically, followed by the rustle of the leather coat and the clomping of the heavy boots. Sephiroth started to get out of bed, intending to put another log on the fireplace, but he discovered something unpleasant and he didn't finish the action.

Cloud had told him to stay there and while he probably only meant it in a figurative sense, the desire behind his words activated the trigger. Sephiroth was—quite literally—stuck in bed. "Cloud," he called, intending to get his lover to come in and lift the accidental order. The front door slammed shut just as the name left his mouth. Cloud was off, probably running down the street as fast as he could in the heavy boots.

"Wonderful," Sephiroth sighed. His erection began to deflate and he noticed another unpleasant issue: he was going to have to pee soon.

"Just fucking wonderful," he groaned.

* * *

-To be continued


	20. The mighty have fallen Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 20

Cloud hardly cared about the curious look the pharmacist gave him when he barged in at five minutes before closing time, selected a box of condoms for the "endowed male" and brought it to the checkout counter. Clearly the man didn't think Cloud was built to suggest the need for larger sized rubbers and the blonde's rush to get them probably gave away that he was buying them for a male partner. Cloud Strife simply didn't care at this point. He'd gladly climb onto the monument in the center of town and shout that he was as gay as a rainbow-colored chocobo at the top of his lungs if it meant he could FINALLY consummate his relationship with Sephiroth.

He thanked the pharmacist breathlessly and hurried home, irrationally worried that in the short time he was away, Sephiroth lost interest in making love with him.

"I've got 'em!" Cried the blonde as he shut and locked the door, kicked his boots off and charged to the bedroom whilst waving the Box of Salvation over his head like a trophy. Sephiroth was reclined on the bed with the covers pulled up to his waist and his ankles crossed over each other. He smirked at the box in Cloud's hand.

"That's wonderful, Cloud," said Sephiroth dryly, "but unfortunately, I need to have a leak before we can make use of them."

"Not a problem," Cloud replied as he opened the coat and removed it to hang it on the hook on the door. "I'll just wait here for you."

Sephiroth wasn't moving.

Cloud paused on his way to the bed, raising his eyebrows at the man. "Uh, didn't you say you needed to go to the bathroom?"

"Yes I did, Cloud. However, I need your permission to get up." Sephiroth gazed at him expectantly, his eyes traveling his body despite his irritation. It was difficult to hold onto his annoyance with the blonde standing there in those cutoffs.

Cloud frowned. "Why would you need…my…oh." It dawned on him that he'd told Sephiroth not to move just before he ran out of the house. He flushed with embarrassment and guilt with the realization that he'd accidentally confined him to the bed. "I…shit, I'm sorry, Sephiroth. You can get up."

"Why, thank you." Sephiroth didn't sound angry so much as patiently amused. He pulled the covers down and swung his legs over the side of the bed. Unconcerned with his nudity, he crossed the room to the door, his lips quirking a bit at the wide-eyed expression on the blonde's face.

"I'm really sorry," Cloud said again as Sephiroth started past him. "I wasn't even thinking about it when I said that."

Sephiroth couldn't contain a soft laugh. He paused on his way out the door to run his hand over the blonde's lithe back and nuzzle his ear. "If I thought you had done it on purpose, I'd be angry. Little dingbat."

Cloud bit his lip and grinned at him. "Are you still going to want to…you know?"

Sephiroth glanced down at his groin, feeling it already responding to the sight of Cloud's toned body and his proximity. "Oh, have no doubt about that, Cloud. I just want to finish having a piss before you make me stiff again and it becomes a chore. I've learned that urinating with a hard on can be…messy."

Cloud snickered impulsively and nodded with agreement. "I'll just get settled and wait here for you, then."

A little demon tempted Sephiroth to make Cloud wait for a long time, just to pay him back. Unfortunately the blonde was already affecting his libido and he knew he wouldn't be able to wait for much longer, himself. The way the blue eyes caressed him with admiration made his desire spike and forced him to hurry to the restroom before he hardened fully.

He managed to relieve his bladder with minimal difficulty and he wiped himself off with a wet, soapy washcloth when he was finished. The last thing he wanted to do was leave traces of urine where he knew most of Cloud's attention was going to be focused. He smirked at the thought and went completely hard as he imagined the blonde's lips around him. Having his cock orally pleasured when it was hard was another thing he'd never experienced before. Zackary had talked him into letting him do it twice before and while it had been pleasurable, he knew that getting that sort of treatment when erect was probably very different. Not that he intended to ask Cloud for it or push him to do it, he just knew from past encounters that the blonde had been wanting to do it for a long time now.

When Sephiroth returned to the bedroom he was treated to the sight of Cloud reclining on the left side of the bed, with his fingers locked together behind his head. The zipper of his cutoffs was down, exposing the flushed head of his erection. Cloud gave him that sweet, boyish smile of his and Sephiroth wondered if the blonde was even aware of how painfully desirable he was.

Cloud noticed the taller man's hesitation and his eyes strayed to the proudly jutting cock between Sephiroth's legs. "You don't have to smack yourself this time," he said with a little smirk as the organ hardened even further and Sephiroth looked slightly embarrassed.

Sephiroth mumbled something incoherent and approached, a faint flush coloring his cheekbones. Cloud rolled onto his right side and propped himself up with his elbow as his lover stretched out next to him. He immediately reached out to trace Sephiroth's pectorals with his fingertips. His golden lashes lowered as he gazed down the general's toned body with admiration.

Sephiroth held off on his own explorations for a moment, allowing Cloud to touch him at leisure. He usually limited the amount of time the blonde had to do this because his touch ignited fire in his veins and he feared that too much would send him over the edge. Tonight it was different; he could give in to his urges without fear of harming his smaller companion. Cloud was almost fully healed and he didn't have to worry about snapping him like a wishbone. He closed his eyes as the blonde's hand moved down to his hips, the fingers still tracing the muscles and bones lightly. There was something faintly teasing about the caress; it gave pleasure and was inviting at the same time. Honestly, Sephiroth was beginning to think that Cloud was the perfect uke.

Cloud took his time, pleased that his companion wasn't stopping him or limiting where he could touch him. As eager as he was to finally have Sephiroth inside of him, he didn't want to move too fast and startle him. He knew that eventually the man would adjust to his sexuality and in the meantime, Cloud would have to guide him and show him that he was willing to give himself to him completely. Sephiroth's nature was to dominate and he needed to learn that it was okay to do so in bed, as well as on the battlefield.

He leaned in and pressed a light, soft kiss on Sephiroth's throat, then dragged his lips down to the chest he adored so much to do the same there. Once his lips touched the silken skin, one kiss wasn't enough for Cloud. He licked daintily at a nipple before taking it between his lips. Sephiroth's arm went around him and he sighed as Cloud pleasured the nub to hardness before moving on to the other one. The blonde couldn't see his companion's soft smile of amusement as he went from gently kissing the beautiful chest to worshipping it with his mouth and tongue. He knew Sephiroth found it funny that he was so enamored with his chest but he couldn't bring himself to care.

Slowly he allowed his hand to glide lower to trace the lines of Sephiroth's pelvis. He felt the other man tense slightly with anticipation and he murmured to him soothingly before dragging his fingers through the crisp, lustrous nest of hair framing his genitals. This time, Sephiroth didn't jump when he curled his fingers around the impressive girth of his cock. Cloud congratulated himself on being smooth with his exploration and he squeezed the shaft and pulled gently toward the head. Sephiroth groaned and Cloud smiled against the smooth skin of his chest as he began to massage the hard length.

"How's that?" Cloud inquired, pausing in his kissing to look up at Sephiroth. He brushed his thumb over the slit in the tip of the organ, making a bead of moisture form and drawing a sharp gasp from Sephiroth.

"Feels wonderful," Sephiroth responded, a flush stealing over his cheeks. He always felt so awkward describing his feelings but Cloud always asked about it. The only reason he didn't complain was because he knew by now that the blonde was a very considerate lover and he asked these questions because he wanted to give him as much pleasure as he could.

He was rewarded for his compliance with a happy smile from Cloud, which made his heart leap in his chest. Impulsively, Sephiroth bent his head to kiss those sweet, smiling lips. He gasped again when the blonde rubbed the tip of his cock in a circular motion, stimulating it to release more drops of precum.

 _~I love you, Cloud.~_

Sephiroth hadn't said it allowed but he'd unwittingly mouthed the words against his companion's lips. Cloud felt the sensitive mouth form the words against his lips and he nearly stopped what he was doing. He pulled back and stared at the taller man with amazed wonder on his fair features. Sephiroth looked back at him and swallowed, seeming to struggle to say the words out loud. Cloud smiled brightly at him and kissed him again; saving him the effort of saying something he'd already made clear. He made a sound of eager excitement in his throat when Sephiroth's tongue slid into his mouth to caress his.

"I want to taste you," Cloud murmured breathlessly against Sephiroth's lips when the kiss ended. "Can I?"

Sephiroth nodded and eased himself onto his back. He combed his fingers through Cloud's soft fluffy hair and tried to relax as the blonde's mouth traveled down his torso, while his hands rested on Sephiroth's hips. The silver warrior couldn't stop himself from tensing up when he felt Cloud's warm breath caressing the head of his sex. He looked down and immediately wished he hadn't. The sight of Cloud's shapely lips sliding down over the shiny cap of his dick was fascinating in itself, but the feel of it…oh, the feel!

"Fuck," Sephiroth gasped shakenly, his eyes widening with the unfamiliar, amazing feeling of someone's warm, wet mouth drawing on his erect cock. It was very different from oral pleasure while soft. He was highly sensitized now and as Cloud's lips tightly sealed around the girth and his tongue stroked the underside, Sephiroth lost the ability to focus his eyes. For a moment he saw two blond heads lowering over his pelvis.

Cloud withdrew his mouth and allowed the stiffened organ to slide out. "Is it too much, Sephiroth? Am I sucking it too hard?" He asked, looking up the length of the other man's body to study his face.

"No, it's…it's fine, Cloud," Sephiroth answered breathlessly. "I just wasn't expecting it to feel so good." He wanted to demand that he continue but he didn't want to seem selfish.

Cloud smiled, having only paused because he was unsure whether there was a hint of pain in Sephiroth's voice or not. "Just relax," he advised gently…and this time he didn't care if the trigger compelled his lover to obey or not. If he was too tense he wouldn't be able to enjoy it as much. He felt the muscles relax under his hands and he gripped the base of the cock with one of them to brace it before he continued. Sephiroth heaved another shuddering gasp as Cloud took it into his mouth again, this time without stopping. He braced the taller man's pelvis with one hand while holding his sex with the other, and he began to move his head to take the swollen flesh in and out of his mouth. He found a good rhythm and relaxed his throat muscles to take more of it in.

Sephiroth's head fell back and he stared at the ceiling with glazed eyes as his lover demonstrated that he was every bit as good at fellatio as he was. He moaned again despite his efforts to stay silent and his hands stroked Cloud's hair encouragingly. The blonde varied his techniques, turning his head from one side to the other so that he could take him in at different angles. He occasionally paused when he reached the head and lightly scraped his teeth over the tip, making Sephiroth's body shudder spasmodically and drawing a groan from him. The combination of the wet suction and the motions of the blonde's tongue and lips was sheer heaven, and before long the pleasure and pressure grew to unbearable heights.

Knowing what the hot, throbbing pressure in his balls meant, Sephiroth gasped a warning. "Cloud…I'm getting close." He hissed and trembled as the blonde sucked harder and moved his mouth faster in response. "Oh…shit…I'm not kidding, Cloud. You're in for some extra protein if you keep going!" Why he expected the blonde to stop when he never did so under the same circumstances, Sephiroth didn't know. He supposed on some level that he wanted to spare his lover the salty bitterness of his come, but Cloud obviously had enough experience to be accustomed to it.

He lost control completely when Cloud took him all the way down his throat and swallowed. "Cloud!" Sephiroth groaned raggedly, his hips bucking. His eyes closed in ecstasy as his balls contracted and his cock twitched hard inside the blonde's mouth. He arched his neck and threw his head back, releasing Cloud's hair to clutch the blankets desperately. The orgasm seemed to go on and on, until Sephiroth couldn't catch his breath and he wondered if he would pass out before it finished.

Cloud kept sucking and swallowing while rubbing his lover's thighs soothingly. Sephiroth's cock kept bucking inside of his mouth even when there was no longer any seed left to ejaculate. Cloud eased up after a few seconds, when the spasms finally slowed. He allowed the spent organ to slide out of his mouth and he kissed his way back up Sephiroth's body to his face. He nibbled and kissed the taller man's parted, gasping mouth, smiling a little with pride.

"Isn't it better when you can relax and enjoy it?" Cloud asked between kisses.

Sephiroth nodded mutely, still trying to catch his breath. He returned Cloud's kisses passionately, expressing in no uncertain terms that while he was temporarily sated, he was by no means finished. His hands stroked the blonde's back and slid around to the front. It was Cloud's turn to gasp as Sephiroth's hand found his exposed erection and began to stroke it leisurely. "Payback, huh?" the blonde asked breathlessly.

Sephiroth chuckled softly and stimulated the tip, making the smaller man groan against his lips. He loved to pet Cloud's dick and listen to his moans and sighs. He licked the blonde's lips with the tip of his tongue and pulled back to watch his face. The sapphire eyes were heavy-lidded with pleasure and there was a charming flush coloring his cheeks. That was another thing Sephiroth loved; the way Cloud's fair complexion revealed his blushes of passion so readily. He was again reminded of a porcelain ball-joint doll as he watched the blonde's soft lips part for another moan of pleasure. Cloud's tongue swiped those compelling lips instinctively and Sephiroth couldn't resist cupping the back of his head with his free hand and drawing him closer for another kiss.

He felt his groin throb as he plundered Cloud's pliant mouth and he knew it wouldn't take long for him to recover from his orgasm. Cloud began to flex his hips in time with Sephiroth's stroking hand, pushing himself into his grip and out again with perfect synchronization. He whimpered Sephiroth's name and sucked on his tongue eagerly. The tip of his sex was lubricating nicely and Sephiroth smoothed the slippery fluid over the head with his fingertips, until the heart-shaped cap was shiny and slick. He looked down and admired the swollen flesh, finding it unreasonably pretty. He'd never thought of dicks as "pretty" before, but somehow even parts of Cloud's body that didn't traditionally fit that adjective managed to bend the rules. Quite simply there wasn't a single inch of the blonde's body that wasn't pretty to Sephiroth.

"You're close already," Sephiroth purred with amused arousal as the blonde shuddered and moaned steadily. "Shall I make you come, Cloud? Or shall I deny you release until I'm inside of you?"

Cloud's eyes flared open and his mouth worked desperately. Sephiroth smiled and slowed his fondling. "I think I prefer the latter option. Let's peel these shorts off of you now, hmm?"

"Th-they aren't THAT tight," Cloud gasped, writhing against Sephiroth in a silent plea for him to keep going.

An irresistible desire to make Cloud scream with need and pleasure took over Sephiroth and he chuckled at the blonde's slutty actions. "I'll let you come when I'm ready for you to," he said in a dulcet, seductive tone. He ignored the pleading expression on the blonde's stunning features and released his cock to tug down on the waist of his shorts. "Lay back, Strife. These aren't going to just slip off with a couple of tugs."

Cloud sighed but didn't argue. He lay on his back and lifted his hips as Sephiroth pulled on his shorts. They slid down easily and the silver-haired man's expression showed mild surprise. Cloud grinned up at him. "See? I told you they aren't as tight as they look. I'd never be able to exercise in them otherwise. The fibers are stretchy."

"Indeed," Sephiroth replied as he pulled them off completely and examined them with a smirk. "You realize of course that I'll want you to wear things like this often when summer comes around."

Cloud chuckled. "Whatever you want, Sephiroth."

The general's emerald gaze flashed hotly and he climbed on top of Cloud's nude form, pushing his thighs apart to settle his hips between them. "Every time you say things like that to me, I feel a need to possess you." He claimed the blonde's mouth again, kissing him more roughly than before. Cloud's submissive moan only increased Sephiroth's desire and he growled low in his throat and dragged a hand down the young man's body, tracing patterns on his outer thigh for a moment with his fingertips. He was fully erect now and he was already producing precum in his excitement. He decided it was time to move things along and prepare Cloud's body to receive him.

Cloud felt the bite of disappointment when Sephiroth levered his body off of his, but it only lasted until the general rolled him over onto his stomach and ran his hands possessively down his back and buttocks. He closed his eyes and relaxed as he felt Sephiroth's fingers trace the cleft between his butt cheeks, understanding what he intended to do next. There was a pause and Cloud felt Sephiroth's weight shift the mattress as he moved. "The lube is on the nightstand, next to the condoms," Cloud murmured, guessing that his lover was searching for it.

Sephiroth paused and considered the blonde for a moment, his serpentine gaze admiring the sight of his fair body stretched out and ready for his pleasure. Shiva, he loved that tight little ass. He reached for the lube and set it beside him on the bed, then impulsively lowered his mouth to kiss the tempting twin mounds. Cloud sighed in response and Sephiroth licked firmly against the soft, smooth skin, squeezing the rounded globes with both hands. "Have you gone to the bathroom since you last bathed, Cloud?" Sephiroth murmured against the delectable skin.

"No," Cloud answered in a soft, dreamy voice, understanding that Sephiroth wasn't asking about urinating. He wasn't entirely sure why he was asking but he imagined it had something to do with preparing him.

What happened next took Cloud completely off-guard. He'd heard of "rimming" but he'd never, ever had anyone do it to him before and he certainly didn't expect a man who'd never claimed anyone before to do it. When he felt Sephiroth's moist tongue dart between his cheeks he lifted his head and made an exclamation of shocked surprise. Sephiroth softly commanded him to be still and Cloud was helpless to disobey, almost as if he had a compulsion trigger as well. He moaned softly as Sephiroth's hands spread his butt cheeks and the tip of his tongue sought out the sensitive ring between them.

Sephiroth pressed his tongue rhythmically against the entrance to Cloud's body, pleased when the blonde whimpered but didn't move. He'd never done this before but he remembered the way Zack often did it to him before intercourse and he used that knowledge to his best advantage. He pushed firmly, getting the tip of his tongue past the tight ring of muscle and eliciting another soft moan from Cloud. He glanced up and saw that the blonde was squeezing the pillows hard, and he smiled and swirled his tongue around the entrance until Cloud was shivering and panting.

Sephiroth stopped for a moment and slipped his hands beneath Cloud's hips, guiding him to his knees and positioning him so that his ass was sticking up invitingly and leaving his hole exposed. He caressed the trembling globes with one hand while reaching for the lube with the other. Before applying any of the slick gel, he tongued him for a little while and played with his genitals. He didn't chastise Cloud for flexing his hips as he stroked his straining erection and rolled his balls in his palm. He knew it was probably impossible for him to stay completely still with this much stimulation.

"Sephiroth," Cloud moaned, biting his lip as the sensations rolled over him and threatened to make him scream. "Oh god, I need you…please…fuck me!"

Sephiroth clenched his jaw against the tide of lust surging through him, determined to make their first time pleasurable for Cloud at all moments. If he were to immediately comply with Cloud's pleas, it would cause tearing and substantial pain for the blonde. "Be still, Cloud. I promise you, I'll fuck you good and proper as soon as I've stretched you enough."

The latter half of his comment made Cloud laugh softly, despite his painful need. "Good…and…proper?" He gasped. "Promises, promises."

"Would you rather I ram into you now and split you open?"

Cloud winced at the thought, picturing Sephiroth's large, beautiful shaft slamming into him without any preparation. No, it wasn't a good idea to tempt a man that was hung like a mule to pound away without stretching first. "I'll try to behave," Cloud conceded softly, holding obediently still.

Sephiroth bit his lips to control a chuckle and he stopped fondling Cloud to reach for the lube. After unscrewing the cap and squeezing out a portion as long as the first digit of his index finger, he loosely capped it again and set it aside. He smeared the lube over his finger and huffed on it with his breath, trying to warm it so that Cloud's ass didn't get a cold surprise. When he thought it was sufficiently warmed, he stroked the blonde's left cheek with his other hand and teased the entrance a little with his lubed finger. Cloud pushed backwards instinctively, whispering a soft plea. With a smug grin, Sephiroth pressed carefully on the puckered hole until it gave and accepted the intrusion. Cloud's soft gasp almost made him pause, but the moan of pleasure immediately following it ensured Sephiroth that he wasn't hurting him.

He watched in fascination as the pink flesh expanded around his invading finger and he pushed it in all the way to the knuckle. The warm, tight grip of Cloud's body made Sephiroth's cock twitch with arousal and his breath quickened. As he withdrew the finger and slowly pushed it back in, Cloud rocked back to aid the penetration. "You have no idea how difficult it is for me to maintain patience and not mount you right now, Cloud." Sephiroth was a little surprised by how rough and husky his voice sounded to his own ears.

Cloud responded by groaning with pleasure and moving his pelvis rhythmically, matching Sephiroth's thrusts. After a little while, the general thought it was safe to add another finger. The tightness felt amazing and Cloud's soft whimpers again had him worried for a moment. "Should I stop?" Sephiroth murmured.

The blonde shook his head negatively and pushed back again, encouraging the penetration. Sephiroth slowly and steadily pumped his fingers inside, feeling Cloud's body heat rise. He slid his other hand under to cup the young man's balls and squeeze them gently. Cloud cried out and shuddered, making Sephiroth groan as well. He felt the gland inside and he smirked as he began to pet it. Cloud's whole body tensed as Sephiroth pressed his fingers against the hard little mass and rubbed it firmly. The silver warrior brushed his lips over his lover's taught ass, kissing one cheek at a time as he massaged the tenderest spot.

Cloud's blue eyes were wide and blank as Sephiroth stimulated his prostate. He'd wondered how Sephiroth could be so good at this but it occurred to him that he probably did this for his lover during sex. Cloud had done it himself to increase the other party's pleasure so it wasn't that odd that Sephiroth was so damned skilled at it.

Any further thoughts he might have had were drowned out as Sephiroth added a third finger, stretching him almost painfully before continuing to rub the gland inside. Cloud panted and bucked back against him, silently begging for him to thrust his fingers harder. When he obliged, the blonde saw stars for a moment and he thought he was going to come. Sephiroth seemed to get that idea as well because the general's other hand stopped fondling his balls and gripped the base of his dick firmly.

"Not yet, Cloud." The silken voice ordered.

Cloud whimpered and nodded submissively, not complaining as his lover kept his cock properly restrained and continued to fuck him with his fingers. He alternately thrust and rubbed inside, until Cloud was yelling with need and sweating.

Deciding that it was enough, Sephiroth removed his finger and stroked the blonde's arched back, telling him he could lie down if he wanted to. Cloud rolled onto his back and stared at him with his chest heaving for breath. Sephiroth removed a condom packet from the box on the dresser and tore it open.

"Mind if I do that for you?" Cloud whispered huskily.

"Absolutely not," answered Sephiroth readily.

Cloud smiled and sat up, scooting closer and taking the condom from his lover. He could tell by Sephiroth's harshly drawn breath that he took him by surprise when he stretched out between the man's legs and used his mouth instead of his hands to unroll the condom over his cock. It was a bit of a chore due to Sephiroth's size, and Cloud hadn't taken into account that there was a combination of spermicide and lubricant coating the inside of the rubber. He tried to ignore the sharp, bitter flavor as he worked his lips around the girth of the general's cock and slid the condom on.

Unfortunately, Cloud wasn't exactly an ace at hiding his expressions. When he completed the job and sat back up, Sephiroth noticed the way his lips were delicately twisted. As exciting as it had been to watch the blonde put the condom on him using only his mouth, he thought he understood what caused that expression. "Spermicide?" he questioned mildly.

Cloud nodded and licked his lips, still grimacing. "Spermicide," he confirmed. "So much for being sexy for you…I guess I look like someone that took a bite out of a turd because I thought it was a candy bar."

Sephiroth responded with one of his rare, full laughs. He reached out and tweaked a strand of his lover's hair, shaking his head with amused exasperation. "Go rinse your mouth out, Strife. I can wait long enough for that, at least."

Cloud didn't argue. As he got up to hurry to the bathroom, Sephiroth swatted his ass lightly and made him yelp. The general kept chuckling softly as he watched him go. He could sympathize—he'd done the exact same thing once and Zack had nearly passed out laughing at him. After a few moments, Cloud returned to the bedroom with a flush of embarrassment brightening his cheeks.

"For what it's worth, I did enjoy watching you do that," Sephiroth said with a crooked grin. "Come here, Cloud. I want you." He had his legs dangling over the side of his bed and his erect, rubber-encased sex was jutting out demandingly from between his thighs.

That simple statement made the blonde forget his feelings of humiliation and he went to the side of the bed and put his arms around the taller man, letting him lift him up so that he was straddling him. "Reminds me a little of the time I fell on you, on the couch," Cloud said as a sudden attack of shyness forced him to lower his gaze.

"Oh, I'll never forget that little encounter, so long as I live," Sephiroth agreed, kissing the blonde's chin and jaw.

"How…I mean, what position do you want me in?" Cloud whispered, closing his eyes in pleasure as the general sucked on a sensitive spot beneath his ear.

"Just like this," purred the taller man. "This way, you can control how much of me you take in and I can see your face when I'm inside of you."

Cloud was again surprised. _~Shit, did he really think he needed me to tell him how to do this? He's a natural! I've been with people that screwed a lot more than he ever has and they didn't have half his skills!~_

Sephiroth then said something that reminded Cloud that he was new to being the giver, even if he did know his way around the body. "Shall I guide myself in, or would it be better for you to do it? I can't promise I'll be entirely accurate at first."

Cloud pulled back and smiled gently at him. "I can guide you in." He kissed him and rose up a bit, lining himself up as he reached between their bodies and grasped Sephiroth's erection. He was nervous but he didn't allow himself to tense up as he relaxed his thighs and descended until he felt the tip of the organ pressing against him. "Can you brace my hips?"

Sephiroth complied, settling his hands over said hips and holding them steady as Cloud sank down. He studied the blonde's face carefully as he felt the tight entrance to his body against his cock. Cloud's teeth worried his lower lip and his eyes squeezed shut as he sank further down. Sephiroth felt his anus clenching against the intrusion and he murmured softly to the blonde, reminding him to take it slowly. Cloud nodded and eased down some more, concentrating on relaxing for his lover. He gasped when the head of Sephiroth's shaft eased past the ring of muscle. Pausing for a deep breath, he waited for his body to adjust and then sank down until the cap was inside of him.

The hardest part was over with. Now that the initial breaching was complete the rest would be easier. Cloud opened his eyes and looked at Sephiroth. The expression on that angelic face nearly made him lose his common sense. There was open wonder and a little bit of astonishment on Sephiroth's face, which made Cloud smile with shy pride. He combed his fingers into the general's silky, lustrous hair and slowly took him the rest of the way in. "You're so…damned big!" Cloud moaned, biting his lip as he was filled and stretched with Sephiroth's throbbing length.

"You're so damned tight," Sephiroth countered, clenching his jaw and taking quick, sharp breaths as the unbelievable pleasure of feeling Cloud's sheath squeezing him nearly made him come undone. The blonde sank all the way down, taking him up to the hilt. For a moment they stayed that way with their quickened breath intermingling like their bodies were. Then Cloud kissed Sephiroth slowly and began to move. The general's bright green eyes were stunned as his blonde companion carefully rode his cock, looking directly into his eyes whilst doing so.

 _~God, Strife…how do you manage to be so direct and so timid at the same time? You're a delightful little paradox!~_

Sephiroth's thoughts were broken as Cloud's gripping heat milked him steadily. The blonde moaned his name and Sephiroth was overcome with lust and pleasure. He bucked his hips hard, driving his hardness in deep and stroking the prostate in passing. Cloud cried out sharply and clutched at his back, the short nails pressing grooves into the skin. The mild pain of it only excited Sephiroth more and he uttered a curse and gripped Cloud's hips firmly.

Cloud hollered incoherently as his partner lifted him up and slammed him down again, while bucking upwards at the same time. He'd never been entered so deeply or so hard before and he whimpered as Sephiroth took control and fulfilled his earlier promise to "fuck him good and proper".

Evidently the years of suppressed sexuality were finally getting the better of Sephiroth. Cloud hardly had time to register what was happening as Sephiroth suddenly rolled, pinning him beneath him and pulling his legs up high. The silver-haired man was now half-crouching over the side of the bed with Cloud spread out beneath him, allowing himself more control over his motions and a better angle for penetration. Cloud couldn't control the scream the burst from his lips as the taller man thrust firmly into him at that angle.

Cloud's scream cut through Sephiroth's haze of lust and he went still, staring down at the blonde with concern. "Too hard?" he panted.

Cloud shook his head, trying to find the breath and the words to ensure Sephiroth that he'd only screamed because he'd hit his prostate hard with that last thrust. The silent answer seemed to be enough to satisfy Sephiroth, because he resumed as soon as Cloud finished shaking his head. "Ah…Seph…i…roth!" Cloud groaned as the general cupped his ass and lifted it for deeper penetration. Sephiroth drove into him again and again, gasping his name and groaning without restraint as the pleasure and his instincts took over.

Retaining some semblance of awareness, Sephiroth exerted some control over his thrusts, smoothing them so that they weren't too sharp or uneven. He rose up a little to give himself room to touch his smaller companion, running his hands over Cloud's sweating torso and stomach. He watched the blonde's erection slap against his belly as he took him and he couldn't resist petting it. Cloud writhed and whimpered, his hands desperately grabbing Sephiroth's ass as the general pumped steadily and firmly. Sephiroth watched his dick plunging in and out of the blonde's body and the sight made him come close to orgasm. Determined to make the encounter last as long as he could, Sephiroth released Cloud's ass and squeezed the base of his cock to deny himself the climax that his body wanted.

Cloud's breath hitched as Sephiroth's thrusting sex and stroking hand brought him closer to his peak. He looked up at the general and saw the way the thick, silver lashes were lowered. When he realized that Sephiroth was watching his shaft thrusting in and out of him, he lost control and arched his back. Cloud hollered his lover's name again as he came in several thick spurts, splattering both Sephiroth and himself with the mess. He didn't care and by the way Sephiroth was staring down at him, the sight and feel of the seed hitting their skin was anything but disgusting to him.

"You're beautiful, Cloud," Sephiroth stated in an uneven, silken voice. "I never get tired of looking at your face when you're coming." He closed his eyes and sighed with pleasure as Cloud's body clenched rhythmically around his cock as a result of the orgasm.

Cloud's torso heaved as he recovered from the climax. He licked his lips and gazed up at his lover with fulfilled pleasure, moaning softly as he continued to fuck him. He was used to his lovers coming before he did, or at least directly afterwards. Sometimes his orgasm didn't happen from intercourse, but as a result of he or his partner giving him a hand job afterwards. It was wonderful to come so easily during intercourse and pleasantly surprising to have his lover still thrusting steadily against him afterwards.

"You're so good," Cloud whimpered. Sephiroth's thrusts were so powerful and now that he'd gotten a bit more used to it, they were also controlled. It made sense if he thought about it—Sephiroth was built to excel in everything. His ability to learn and adjust was superior to the average man's…and even to most other Soldiers. Why shouldn't those gifts also carry over to bedroom skills?

Sephiroth smiled lustfully down at the blonde, adjusting his rhythm and speed slightly to give him time to recuperate. He wanted to make Cloud come once more before allowing his own release but there was no guarantee that he could do that. The timing and strength of his thrusts combined with angling them to stimulate the gland inside were all factors in determining whether he gave Cloud enough pleasure to make him hard and ready again. At least, that was his theory based on what he knew of male biology and sex. Smut books weren't exactly on his desired reading list so he was using scientific principals to determine his course of action. Despite Cloud's compliment, Sephiroth didn't think he was "good" at this yet so much as lucky.

His thoughts on prostate massage struck him with sudden inspiration and Sephiroth shoved deeply into Cloud's body and instead of thrusting, he rotated his hips. The blonde's sapphire eyes popped open wide and his sweet lips parted to emit a sound that was like a groan and a whimper combined. His hands again squeezed Sephiroth's taught ass, begging him wordlessly not to stop.

"Do you enjoy that, Cloud?" Sephiroth questioned with a wicked smile.

"Oh…ah…GOD, SEPHIROTH!" was Cloud's ragged response. His cock hardened again before Sephiroth's eyes and he tossed his head, gasping sharply and panting unevenly.

Excited with the response, the silver-haired man withdrew himself to the tip and thrust home firmly before resuming the hip rotation. Cloud's eyes rolled and fluttered closed and he bit his bottom lip, flushing as another orgasm began its approach.

"Very nice, Cloud," Sephiroth panted as he again fondled the blonde's stiffening shaft. "Do it for me again. I want to see that look on your face once more."

Cloud's brows furrowed and Sephiroth released his ass to brought the fingers of his free hand to the blonde's parted lips, rubbing the pads back and forth over them. Cloud instinctively took the digits into his mouth and sucked firmly on them, his nostrils flaring with his quickened breath. Eyes as blue as the ocean off the beaches of Costa De Sol opened and stared into Sephiroth's.

"Cloud," the general groaned, realizing that he was going to need to squeeze the base of his sex again to prevent ejaculation. His hands were occupied however and Sephiroth had no intention of ceasing his massage or pulling his fingers out of that delectable mouth. Cloud moaned around his fingers and arched his back again as his second peak came. Sephiroth cursed with relief and let the wonderful spasms around his cock drive him over the edge. He bucked inside of Cloud and grunted with pleasure as he filled the condom with his seed. Trembling with the release, he pumped his hips slowly a couple of times, holding himself steady for a few seconds within the blonde. He spurted until there was no room left in the rubber and his creamy seed dribbled out from under the base of the condom at the root of his shaft.

When it eased up and stopped, Sephiroth collapsed on top of his companion and panted heavily. Cloud was likewise sucking air and he ran his fingers through Sephiroth's hair and kissed his cheek. He winced a little and Sephiroth realized that he'd stretched his healing thigh a bit too much, pushing his knees up practically level to his ears. The general rose up and slipped out of his smaller companion carefully, then guided Cloud's legs to rest and dangle over the side of the bed. He caressed the blonde's sweaty cheek and stared down at him.

"Does your thigh hurt?"

Cloud shook his head, closing his eyes with sleepy bliss. "It only hurt a little when you pressed me down a minute ago. It's okay now."

"Good," Sephiroth sighed. He grimaced down at himself as he felt the slippery confines of the semen-filled condom still encasing his shaft. "I think I'll throw this thing away and bring back a soapy wash cloth. Just rest, Cloud."

The blonde nodded and watched him go. He raised his arms and threaded his fingers behind his head, knowing he was grinning like a fool. Cloud felt like the luckiest guy in the world. Not only was Sephiroth the most gorgeous creature on Gaia, but he was also the fastest learner and most attentive lover Cloud had ever been with.

 _~If he's this good when he's not sure what he's doing, I'm never going to want to get out of bed when he gets the hang of things.~_

Cloud sighed and maneuvered himself so that he was laying properly on the bed. He closed his eyes and for the first time, he wondered who Sephiroth's previous lover had been. He must have been a demon in bed, to have taught the man so much. He made a mental note to ask him about it later.

* * *

-To be continued


	21. The mighty have fallen Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 21

The next morning, Cloud woke up to find himself alone in the bed. He'd been tucked thoroughly in and he sighed and snuggled into the covers, inhaling the scent of sex and his lover that permeated his skin and the sheets. He thought he heard the coffee jug boiling in the kitchen, which meant that Sephiroth probably hadn't been up and about for very long. Cloud yawned and stretched languidly, grinning like an idiot again as he replayed the night's events in his head. His stomach growled and he smirked down at it ruefully. He was sure that Sephiroth would come and get him out of bed for breakfast after he had his morning coffee. They usually took turns cooking lunch and dinner for each other but as Sephiroth tended to wake up earlier than Cloud on the days that the blonde didn't have deliveries to make, so he usually had breakfast ready for him.

Cloud sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes, noticing immediately that the articles of clothing they shed last night had been picked up. He rolled over and opened the drawer of the nightstand, chuckling when he found the lube and new box of condoms neatly placed inside. He'd never dare tease Sephiroth about it but honestly, the general was the cleanest male he'd ever met.

Cloud stood up and went to his closet, pulling his robe out to wear until he'd had breakfast and a shower. He selected a burgundy turtleneck sweater and a pair of dark gray jeans for the day and then picked out a pair of socks and underwear. This time he had the foresight to put his feet into his slippers to spare himself the cold floors. As he left the bedroom and started down the hall to the bathroom, he saw Sephiroth sitting on the couch in the living room. The silver-haired man was in his dark robe, evidently having already taken his morning shower. He was reading the morning paper and sipping a steaming cup of coffee.

 _~How can anyone look that sexy doing something so simple?~_

Cloud had always thought that a cultured, highly intelligent lover would clash too much with his personality, but watching Sephiroth sitting there with his silver hair drying from his shower, all the blonde wanted to do was drape himself over the couch beside him and kiss him.

Sephiroth either heard his soft footsteps or sensed his eyes on him, because he glanced up from the newspaper and gave Cloud a soft, subtle smile. "You're awake early today."

 _~I couldn't wait to see you again.~_ Cloud kept the thought to himself, not wanting to come off as desperately clingy. Aloud, he said; "I slept pretty good last night. I'll make breakfast this morning while you finish reading your paper. I just need to put my clothes in the bathroom for later."

Sephiroth nodded, studying Cloud and noticing the flush on his cheeks. "Have I done something to embarrass you already, Cloud?" He set his coffee mug on the coffee table and held his gaze.

"What?" Cloud asked, but he felt the warmth in his cheeks and he silently railed at his low blush factor. "Oh, no…I just…you look so sophisticated and sexy, sitting there like that. I guess I'm just embarrassed at my own train of thought." As soon as he said it he wished he hadn't. He bit his lip and felt his face heat up even more, wondering why he could never play it cool around the man.

Sephiroth snorted softly with amusement, but his green eyes were intrigued as he made to fold his newspaper up and get off the couch.

"No, no…if you do that we'll never get breakfast cooked and I'll never get my shower," Cloud said as he held out one hand in a warding gesture.

"Afraid I might ravish you?" Sephiroth's amusement grew even as his groin stirred. He looked the blonde up and down, admiring the portion of smooth chest exposed in the open V of his white robe. "Now that you mention it, that does sound like an excellent start to the day."

"Hey, don't do that!" Cloud said with alarm as the general finished folding his newspaper and stood up. Sephiroth smiled wickedly at him and advanced, the trigger failing to make him comply with the order.

"The interesting thing about the compulsion trigger," Sephiroth said as he stalked across the floor, "is that it only works when you MEAN it, Cloud."

"I…I do mean it," Cloud stammered, backing away while clutching his clothes to his chest. "You don't understand how addictive…shit…Sephiroth!"

The silver warrior had finished closing the short distance between them and backed Cloud against the hallway wall. The humor in his eyes hadn't faded and the lust was brighter. He put his hands flat on the wall on either side of Cloud's head and leaned in for a kiss. Knowing that he wouldn't be able to rely on the chip to stop him, Cloud ducked beneath his arms and tried to dodge past him to the nearby bathroom door. Sephiroth laughed with dark, lusty mirth and caught the blonde around the waist, pulling him tight against his body and pinning him up against the wall. Cloud's arms were trapped between their bodies, still clutching his clothes.

"Hey, didn't you hear me? I said—mph!" Cloud's protest was interrupted by Sephiroth's hot, demanding kiss. He felt the taller man's strong hands slide down his body and cup his bottom, squeezing firmly. Cloud's throaty whine was muffled by his lover's mouth as Sephiroth's tongue pushed between his lips. His desire flared and he hardened against the taller man's thigh, sighing with instinctive surrender and reciprocating his tongue's caress.

Sephiroth ravished his mouth for a little while and felt him up, lifting the hem of his bathrobe and pushing his hands underneath to touch his naked skin. He'd originally intended to tease the blonde a little and then let him carry on with his morning business. Unfortunately, Sephiroth's libido demanded more as soon as their lips touched and he couldn't bring himself to wait until after Cloud had eaten and had a shower. His breath quickened as he groped Cloud's hardening erection and he released his mouth to kiss his neck and shoulder.

"Sephiroth—"

 _~Quit whining, Strife.~_

Sephiroth interrupted the next protest by pushing the first two fingers of his free hand into his open mouth. Cloud instinctively sucked on them and moaned as Sephiroth rubbed his swelling arousal. The tall swordsman smiled against his lover's soft skin and murmured; "You've woken the beast and now you have to pacify it, Cloud."

 _~Damn, no kidding!~_ Cloud thought dazedly as his lover ground his hips against him and let him feel how excited he was. He'd always assumed that Sephiroth would be aggressive and demanding once he got used to his sexuality but he wasn't prepared for it so soon. He figured he had at least a week before the general felt comfortable enough to cut loose like this on him.

He quieted and Sephiroth removed his fingers from his mouth, bringing his hand down again to cup his ass. The blonde put up one last token of resistance as his lover stopped fondling his crotch and used both hands to lift him up. Sephiroth's mouth crushed against his again and Cloud's struggles ceased. He felt himself being carried back into the bedroom and he knew he wasn't going to get out of this without a sore butt.

Sephiroth dumped him on the bed with a grin, wrestling the pile of clothes still clutched in Cloud's arms away from him. The robe had ridden up to bare the blonde's leg up to the thigh and the material had parted in the front during the struggles. Cloud's flushed erection was poking out of the slit in the robe, standing at attention and begging for affection. The blonde stared up at him with dazed blue eyes, breathing heavily as Sephiroth put his pile of clothes on the side of the bed and stretched out on top of him. The general deftly untied the belt holding the garment closed and yanked it open. One of the seams tore a little but Sephiroth didn't pause.

"H-hey!" Cloud gasped. His lover yanked the abused robe out from under him and claimed his mouth again to muffle any further protests. His lips smiled against Cloud's as he slipped a hand between their bodies and down to fondle his throbbing shaft again and the blonde moaned. His thumb circled the tip, making him shiver. Forgetting his annoyance at the damage to his robe, Cloud bucked into Sephiroth's touch and put his arms around him.

"I'm afraid I'm going to be a selfish bastard and demand satisfaction now," Sephiroth panted against his lips.

By now, the blonde was too aroused to argue any more. He raised his arms over his head submissively and opened his eyes to gaze up at the taller man. "I'm ready."

Sephiroth paused, taken by surprise as usual by Cloud's ability to combine reluctance and willingness. Was he ever like that when he bottomed for Zack? He couldn't remember being that way, but then he wasn't naturally attuned to the role of being the receiver the way Cloud seemed to be.

"I thought you were going to be a selfish bastard," Cloud teased, his sapphire eyes twinkling. His golden lashes fluttered and he sighed with pleasure as Sephiroth's hand continued to steadily stroke his erection.

Sephiroth brought his mouth down to the young man's throat and bit it lightly, making him gasp and tense beneath him. "Oh, I am. You just have a way of keeping me in a state of confusion, Cloud." He nibbled the tender skin, licking and sucking at it for a moment before ceasing his massage to stretch out and pull the end table drawer open. He retrieved the lubricant and condoms and impatiently pulled the lid of the box open, tearing it in the process. Cloud silently watched him, smiling softly as he fumbled with the packets and tore one open.

"Don't look so smug, Strife," Sephiroth muttered as he fished the rubber out of the packet, "You started this."

Cloud couldn't have faked his astonished expression if he tried. "Me? Hey, YOU'RE the one that jumped ME, remember? I was just trying to get breakfast and have a shower."

Sephiroth glanced down at him as he untied his robe and discarded it. Cloud's eyes softened at the sight of his nudity and he smirked. "It's expressions like that one you're wearing now that drive me to distraction. I may have acted on it but you asked for it."

"Sure, blame the victim," Cloud snorted.

"Shall I stop, then?" Sephiroth paused in the act of rolling the condom on, looking down at Cloud with raised eyebrows.

The blonde wasn't fast enough to control the look of horror on his face in response to that and Sephiroth laughed outright, bending down to kiss his pouting lips. "You see Cloud, to be a victim you have to be unwilling."

The blonde sighed, returning his kisses and reaching one hand down eagerly to pet the silver-haired man's gloved erection. "Fine, I want it. Happy?"

"A little too happy," Sephiroth warned breathlessly, pulling Cloud's hand away. "I'm far too horny for that right now, Cloud."

Feeling like they'd reached a tie in the battle of who started what, Cloud allowed his lover to push his hand away and he put his hands above his head again and waited. Sephiroth stared at him for a moment and his throat muscles worked as he swallowed, hinting that the pose Cloud was in excited him. He put his attention back on preparing himself, lubing his cock thoroughly before squeezing out more onto his index finger for Cloud. Sephiroth frowned at the tube, noting that it was less than half-full. Given how readily his desire for Cloud reared its head, he thought it would be a good idea to purchase more of the lubricant tomorrow.

With that thought came the unbidden question of how many previous lovers Cloud had been with. Sephiroth knew that it was common sense for a sexually mature adult to keep protection and basic necessities around but he couldn't help but wonder how often Cloud had those little "encounters" before he came along. The thought of another man sliding into his lover's body and rutting over him made an ugly feeling rise in Sephiroth's breast. He choked it down ruthlessly. Who Strife had taken to his bed in the past didn't matter anymore. He was his now and he'd given Sephiroth absolutely no reason to think otherwise.

"That's a pretty serious look on your face," Cloud observed with a frown. "Something wrong?"

Sephiroth looked at him and smirked with self-depreciation. "I'm literally a green-eyed monster," He answered truthfully, "but I'll get over it in time."

Cloud's eyes went to the half-empty tube of lubricant and he bit his lip. "Uh, I think I get it. Look, I'm going to go ahead and get the humiliation over with. That tube hasn't been used on anyone besides me until you and I started having sex. It…it makes jacking off feel better." One of those sweet blushes that Sephiroth loved so much rose in the blonde's cheeks. "I haven't been with anyone for more than a year, before you. None of them were serious, either."

"How many might those be, Cloud?" Sephiroth regretted the question as soon as he asked it, but it was too late. He parted the blonde's thighs and busied himself with smearing the slick gel over his entrance. He smiled a little when the blond gasped as he allowed the first digit of his forefinger to slip in teasingly.

"F-five," Cloud answered.

Sephiroth stopped briefly and looked at him with unreadable eyes. "Five?"

Cloud nodded, not knowing what to say about it. He knew plenty of people that had been with far more lovers than he had, but the love of his life was asking this question and the number that had once seemed so small compared to other people now loomed large.

Sephiroth resumed, pushing his finger in more deeply and lowering his head to kiss Cloud's abdomen. "Tell me, why didn't you ever pursue something lasting with any of these men?" He murmured after licking the young man's navel.

Cloud stilled beneath him and Sephiroth looked up the length of his body to find him staring at him earnestly. "You should know that by now," the blonde whispered. "There was never anyone else."

There wasn't a thing in the world that Cloud could have said to make him feel any better than that did. He'd just essentially stated that he'd always belonged to Sephiroth, even when he thought he was dead. The general eased his body up, still carefully working Cloud's entrance to receive him. He kissed the blonde's silky lips possessively and added another finger to the penetration. Cloud brought his hands down to cup the general's face and made one of those sounds in his throat that always sent a thrill through Sephiroth's spine.

The silver-haired man had to pause and catch his breath, fearful that his spiking desire would make him come before he could even get inside of Cloud's body. He curled, scissored and thrust his fingers within his lover, trying to dilate him as quickly as possible. Cloud undulated beneath him, panting softly and groaning. Sephiroth looked at him and hissed a curse at the look of arousal and pleasure on his youthful face.

Cloud opened his eyes and looked up at his companion, sensing that he was losing patience. He parted his thighs wider and held his arms open invitingly. "I won't break," he said, "I'm sure I can take you now."

Sephiroth bowed his head over the blonde's torso and groaned. "Don't tempt me."

Cloud laughed huskily and combed his fingers into Sephiroth's hair. "I'm not. Seriously, I'll be okay. I want you."

 _~Strife, you're just asking to be damaged.~_ Aloud, Sephiroth questioned; "Are you sure?" He felt like he was getting ready to burst with need and it would be difficult enough to avoid hurting Cloud initially even if more time was taken to relax him.

Cloud nodded, still holding his position. Sephiroth wasted no further time. He gripped the blonde's knees and lifted them further up and apart while scooting himself closer. Cloud put his hands on the general's narrow waist and parted his lips as he felt him pressing against his sphincter. Sephiroth released the blonde's right knee and reached down to make sure he was positioned correctly, then thrust carefully.

Cloud's sharp, moaning gasp made Sephiroth pause, but the blonde squeezed his waist encouragingly and slid his hands lower to his hips. Sephiroth continued to rock forward, purring with pleasure as he nudged in and his lover's heat squeezed him. He withdrew a little and thrust again, sinking in as deeply as he could go. Cloud groaned his name and his fingers dug into his hips. Confident that the penetration wasn't painful even if it was uncomfortable at the moment, Sephiroth started to slowly pump, using every ounce of self-control he possessed to take it slow until his lover adjusted to him. After a few moments he felt the blonde's tension ease and heard his sigh of pleasure, signaling his adjustment.

"Cloud," Sephiroth whispered haltingly, falling over the blonde to kiss his neck and jaw as he picked up his speed and increased the strength of his thrusts. Cloud arched against him and moved his pelvis in synch with Sephiroth's motions. His soft cries increased on volume and frequency as his lover gradually took him harder and angled his thrusts just right.

Cloud was momentarily blinded when a substantial mass of Sephiroth's hair fell over his face. He spit a few strands out of his mouth and brushed it aside, gasping a breathy laugh. Sephiroth drew back and looked at him questioningly, still pumping firmly into him.

"Hair," Cloud panted, licking his lips. "Smells like…cherry blossoms."

Sephiroth paused to make sure all of his hair was falling to one side, slowing his motions a bit and giving Cloud a deep, sensual kiss. "Better?" he gasped against the blonde's mouth.

"I didn't…mind. Oooh!" Cloud barely got the sentence out before Sephiroth's cock pressed hard against his pleasure spot, sending a jolt through his pelvis and making his erection throb. Sephiroth gave him a wicked look and thrust again at the same angle, making his eyes roll.

"Ahh…I'm coming," Cloud groaned. His lover's mouth claimed his again and muffled his cry of release as his orgasm struck. He rubbed Sephiroth's back as he tried to catch his breath, his bright eyes rolling with pleasure as the other man's thrusting cock kept his peak going for longer than normal. Sephiroth's tongue did that trick that made him feel like he was getting mouth-fucked and Cloud trembled and wondered if he was going to end up coming until he was totally spent.

Sephiroth would have loved to hold out for longer and make Cloud come again, but his own lust and pleasure was too strong for him to contain. He growled the blonde's name and pumped hard until he filled his condom with his release. Sweating and gasping, he rested his forehead on his lover's shoulder and stayed inside of him until the heavenly spasms stopped. When it was finished, he kissed Cloud's throat and chest, then his mouth.

For a while they just stayed like that, exchanging kisses and touches while still interlocked. Cloud's stomach eventually reminded them with a growl of protest that recovering blondes needed their protein.

"I'll have to remedy that," Sephiroth whispered, sliding out of his lover and pressing kisses down his chest to his complaining belly. "Go and have your shower, while I cook breakfast."

Cloud glanced at his watch. "More like lunch, now."

Sephiroth shrugged. "We'll call it brunch, then."

"Hey, wait," Cloud said as the general started to get up. Sephiroth paused and looked at him inquiringly. "There's something I want to ask you, since we went over my past love life earlier."

Sephiroth raised an eyebrow. "Wanting to hear what sort of dirty things my previous lover and I got up to, Strife?"

Cloud grinned and shook his head. "I can already guess that. I just wondered, did you really only have one lover before me?"

"Yes. My condition didn't inspire me to actively seek relationships. He sought me out and eased his way in before I really knew what was happening." Sephiroth smiled slightly with the memories of Zack's stubborn pursuit of him.

"What was he, like a porn star or something?" Cloud persisted, "Because I've got to be honest with you, some of the things you've done were totally new to me and I've been with more people."

 _~A…a porn star? Zackary?~_ Sephiroth's lips twitched and he pressed them together. "More like a horny, black-haired devil," he answered out loud.

"Heh, sounds a little like Zack," Cloud grinned.

Sephiroth raised his eyebrows expectantly.

Cloud's lips parted and his expressive blue eyes opened wide. "Wait…you mean…you and Zack? Really?"

Sephiroth chuckled softly. "That's right. I thought you already knew that."

Cloud shook his head rapidly. "I had no idea! I always thought he was girl crazy and he never said anything…oh, wait…" He thought back on how close Zack and Sephiroth had always seemed before the Nibelheim incident and he remembered all of the things Zack knew about the general that nobody else knew. He may have never said anything outright but Cloud realized for the first time that if he'd just paid more attention, he could have probably figured it out.

"I made him be discreet," Sephiroth said, seeing the embarrassment surfacing on Cloud's face. "And you're right…he was girl crazy. He was also boy crazy to tell you the truth—he was simply less vocal about it. He was fond of you in more ways than he wanted you to know, too."

That made Cloud's eyebrows rise. "He was?" He'd always thought Zack was attractive but given that he had no idea he was even a little interested in guys, he'd never entertained thoughts of anything more than friendship with the good-humored fighter. "Why didn't he ever tell me that?" He questioned, feeling a little hurt.

Sephiroth frowned at him. "You were a minor, Cloud. Zackary did have some morals, after all."

Cloud mentally counted back through the years. His memories of his military days were still a bit jumbled and he kept forgetting how young he was back then. "Right," he said slowly as he concentrated, "I think my eighteenth birthday was just around the corner when everything went to shit."

Sephiroth regarded him thoughtfully. "I think if it weren't for your youth, Zackary might have tried to drag you into our relationship."

"You think?" Cloud said with a hot blush. It was a weird but not unpleasant thought. He planned to have words with his friend the next time they met in a vision. "How would you have reacted to that?"

Sephiroth gave him a sensual smile and got up.

"Sephiroth?" Cloud asked with a bashful grin.

"The two of us would have worn you out," Sephiroth said over his shoulder as he put his robe on and left the room.

Cloud stared after him thoughtfully, still blushing at the mental image of being in a threesome with his best friend and the man he'd been obsessed with since he'd first heard of him.

* * *

As it turned out, Sephiroth didn't quite get his aggression out of his system with the morning pouncing. Sometime during Cloud's leg-lift exercises, the silver warrior went downstairs and returned with a condom and the lubricant in his pocket. He took him again on the floor of the attic the minute they were finished with his daily physical therapy.

After they ate supper that evening, Cloud went into the garage to give Fenrir a tune-up and halfway through his task he felt warm breath stir the hair at the nape of his neck just before Sephiroth's strong arms went around his waist. He jumped, having failed to hear his lover come up behind him.

"You've got to quit sneaking up on me," Cloud muttered, closing his eyes as the other man nuzzled his neck. "I've got grease on me too. If you're after what I think you're after it's gonna have to wait this time."

"Mmm, grease monkey is a delicacy in some countries, or so I've heard," Sephiroth purred, nibbling his ear and dragging a hand down to cup Cloud between the legs. The blonde dropped his wrench and tried to pry the other man's hand off of his privates, even as he grinned at the comment about eating grease monkey. The hand didn't budge—instead it squeezed and rubbed until Cloud hardened. The blonde pulled his goggles up so that they were resting on the crown of his head and he twisted to look at his captor.

"Are you ever going to let me get any work done?" His complaint was spoiled by the crooked grin on his lips. "Besides, I thought you hated dirt."

"Oh, I don't mind getting my hands dirty, Cloud." Sephiroth's other hand slid up under the blonde's sweater and explored his abdomen and chest. "Especially this way. Being able to clean up afterwards is always a bonus, though."

Cloud's knees turned to jelly as his lover teased his nipples one at a time, while still fondling his groin. "Okay, then. Just let me get—"

"—I've already got the protection and lube," Sephiroth interrupted hotly, "I want you right here."

He ended up bent over Fenrir's seat with his pants down around his ankles and Sephiroth taking him from behind. This was the second time the general had performed a sexual act on him on or over his bike and Cloud was starting to think it was a secret fetish of his. By the time they finished, the blonde's ass was good and sore and Sephiroth drew a bath for him and apologized insincerely for the abuse. Cloud didn't mind—he knew the tenderness would fade in a day or so and he loved the sex too much to complain…much. Sephiroth made it up to him with oral sex before bed, giving him an explosive orgasm that had Cloud yelling so loud he feared the neighbors would think Sephiroth was killing him.

* * *

That night, Cloud couldn't sleep. He was exhausted, but his thoughts were nagging him and keeping him from slumber. He sat up in bed and watched his lover sleep, admiring the way the soft moonlight spilling in from the single window bathed Sephiroth's ethereal face. His silver hair seemed to be a part of the moonlight and his sensitive mouth was parted and relaxed in sleep.

 _~I have to free him. I can't keep him caged like this, anymore.~_

The decision came swiftly and Cloud examined it for a moment to be sure he wasn't making it impulsively. After a few moments, he nodded decisively. Sephiroth had proved himself as far as Cloud was concerned. Even if they weren't lovers, he knew he would feel the same. It was sick and wrong to keep him enslaved like this. For once in his life, Sephiroth deserved to be free.

A cold knot of fear twisted in Cloud's gut at the thought of losing him. What if Sephiroth wouldn't want him after he was freed? What if the only reason this relationship had started to begin with was because it was the only way the general could get any pleasure out of life?

 _~Oh, come ON!~_ A voice that sounded suspiciously like Zack's snapped in Cloud's head. _~Quit being so blind, Cloud. If his feelings for you aren't real, why did he save your ass…twice? Why did he stop that asshole from cutting off your leg? Who wrote "Shimmy down the drain"?~_

Cloud furrowed his brows. "'Shimmy down the drain'?" He repeated in a whisper. Where the hell had that come from?

 _~Sorry, that's been bugging me since I heard someone singing it yesterday. My point is, you two aren't together because of the damned chip.~_

"Are you really talking to me or am I imagining it?" mouthed the blonde silently.

 _~Hey, you've never called me a figment of your imagination before. I'm hurt.~_

Cloud smirked. It was too…Zack…for it to be his imagination. "Okay, I guess you're right. I just…" He looked at his sleeping lover with aching blue eyes and sighed.

 _~I know, man. Sometimes it feels like a dream you don't want to wake up from. You've been through hell and you're finally getting what you've always wanted, but you're afraid to believe it because things always fall apart for you.~_

Cloud nodded with agreement and pulled his knees up, resting his arms on them. "That about sums it up. I'm pretty pathetic, huh?"

 _~Nah, you're Cloud. Super Emo Blonde. One of these days you're gonna have to let yourself be happy and the first step to doing that is to stop devaluing yourself and realize people love you for a reason…and that includes Sephiroth.~_

Cloud smiled a little. "Zack, why didn't you ever tell me about you two? And, did you really…you know…like me…that way?"

There was a heavy pause, followed by: _~Shit, he told you? I mean, he told you I liked you that way?~_

Zack didn't seem to be upset over Sephiroth revealing the true nature of their relationship. Then again he wasn't the one that wanted to keep it hushed from the public in the first place. "Yeah, he told me," Cloud replied silently. "Don't avoid the question."

 _~The only reason I never told you about Seph and I was because I never got the chance. There were a few times I almost spilled the beans but things like missions and him going crazy and us getting stored in test tubes and then running for our lives got in the way. As far as my feelings for you, I never said anything because you were jailbait. I wanted to tell you when we escaped Hojo but you were kind of out of it, and when you snapped out of it I was dying and I didn't want to lay that on your shoulders. Sorry, man.~_

"It's okay," Cloud assured him, feeling a combination of amusement at the extended explanation and grief. "Maybe it's better that you didn't. You always look out for me, Zack."

 _~Always will, if I have anything to say about it,~_ the voice agreed. _~I just want to tell you one thing before I've got to go: Don't be too disappointed if your plan to let him go doesn't work out.~_

Cloud stiffened. "What do you mean by that? You just spent all this time convincing me he wouldn't leave!"

 _~That isn't what I meant. I'm talking about whether you'll be allowed to set him free, bud. Like I said before, I can't tell the future but you're probably going to have a lot of opposition to that idea. Get it?~_

Cloud sighed, his heart rate going back down. "I know. I have to try, though."

 _~He'll appreciate it, trust me. Try to get some sleep, kid.~_

"Why do so many people still call me that?" Cloud asked in annoyance. "I'm a twenty-five year old man, not a 'kid'!"

Zack's voice laughed. _~It's just a pet name. You've still got that innocence and it makes you seem younger than you are. Goodnight, Cloud.~_

"Goodnight," Cloud sighed, lying back down. He wriggled closer to Sephiroth and put an arm around his waist, laying his cheek on the taller man's chest. Sephiroth mumbled in his sleep and dropped a hand on Cloud's shoulder to caress it. The blonde smiled, feeling relaxed enough to close his eyes and get some rest.

* * *

-To be continued


	22. The mighty have fallen Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The mighty have fallen"

"The mighty have fallen"

Part 22

WARNING: Read the author's note in the plot summary please. This is the only chapter that's significant to the hints but I've had complaints about the end of it, so I'm reminding readers to read the summary before reading the end of this chapter.

* * *

Sephiroth noticed a change in Cloud's demeanor the next day. The blonde still gave him his boyish smiles throughout the day as usual, but they seemed more reserved and he couldn't be certain, but Sephiroth thought he detected a hint of fear behind them. He puzzled over it silently and avoided acting on his desire for Cloud, thinking the change might have something to do with how many times he jumped the blonde the day before. Maybe he was sore, or maybe he was trying to adjust to the turn their relationship had taken. He controlled his libido with difficulty and prohibited himself from taking his affections further than kissing and touching, until he could work out what was bothering his lover.

Cloud knew that Sephiroth detected his inner struggle and that only complicated things more, because the silver-haired man wasn't one to talk about such things and Cloud didn't know how to reassure him. His kisses were no less drugging and his touches sent fire through Cloud's veins, but he was holding back and the blonde knew it. That afternoon, Cloud decided to pay a visit to Tifa at the bar and tell her what he planned to do. Sephiroth thankfully declined his offer to come with and have a beer, which Cloud had counted on because he didn't feel right about going without inviting him. While his lover busied himself with exercise in the attic, Cloud left the house and walked to Seventh Heaven.

It was closed. Cloud frowned and mentally reviewed the date.

 _~Oh, public holiday. I forgot.~_

That was fine by him; he'd rather talk to Tifa without anyone having the chance to eavesdrop. He rang the doorbell a couple of times and waited. Though he had a key to Tifa's home business he never just let himself in unless he had to. After a few moments, the brunette answered the door and smiled at him.

"It's about time you dragged yourself away to come and see me," she said as she stood aside for him to step in. "I've hardly had the chance to see you at all since we returned and I've been so busy I haven't had time to stop by. How are you, Cloud?"

He walked into the darkened bar, where the chairs and stools were upturned over the tables and bar. "Sorry about that," he said, "I've been meaning to come visit or invite you over, but to tell you the truth I wasn't sure how you would feel about that. I don't want to push you to hang around Sephiroth and I think he feels the same."

She pulled the chairs off one of the round tables and motioned for him to sit down, taking a seat across from him and propping her elbows on the surface. "I'm all right with it, I guess. I just know you're exploring this new relationship and I didn't want to get in the way. How is the new relationship, by the way?" Her dark eyes scanned him and she grinned when he blushed.

"It's great…more than I ever thought I'd get. He's…um…we've…you know."

Tifa chuckled. "I figured as much. Don't look so embarrassed, okay? It isn't like you're doing anything any other couple wouldn't be doing at this point. What's the matter, though?"

He grimaced. She could read him like a book sometimes. "Nothing. Or maybe I should say nothing yet. Tifa, what do you think about Sephiroth's progress?"

She cocked her head in thought and scratched her left forearm. "It's a little hard to say. I mean, I guess if I look at how he worked with us in Midgar and how he treats you, I'd have to say he's human after all. He still scares me a little but I think he's just naturally intimidating."

Cloud nodded. "Do you get the impression that he's sane?"

She sighed and lowered her gaze. "Yes," she said reluctantly. She looked back up at him with a suspicious expression. "Why are you asking me all of this, Cloud?"

He swallowed. "I want to set him free. It's…wrong…to keep him on a leash. You can understand that, can't you?"

A flash of alarm sparked behind her eyes but she quelled it quickly. "Cloud…I…know it's wrong to resort to mind control but at the same time, look at what he did! How many convicted criminals get to live in a comfortable home and basically come and go as they like? How many are freed in under a year after being sentenced? Don't you think he owes something to society?"

Cloud winced. "I know he does, but I can't even give him simple requests without forcing him, if I'm not careful. Can you imagine being forced to sit down just because someone didn't offer in the form of a question? That's what happens to him if I'm not careful. The other night I trapped him in the bed by accident!"

Tifa put her hand over her mouth and tried to muffle a giggle.

"I know you think it's funny but after a while, it's really not." Cloud huffed, crossing his arms over his chest. "All I did was tell him not to go anywhere and I didn't even mean it literally. I can't even say common things around him without worrying whether the chip is going to compel him to do something. I think that's WORSE than being behind bars."

She sobered and reached across the table to squeeze his hand. "How does he feel, though? Have you asked him?"

Cloud shook his head.

"Well, does he get mad when you accidentally do these things?"

Cloud shrugged. "Not really. He gets a little irritated but I think he knows it's not on purpose."

Tifa chewed her lip in thought. "I think you should talk to him about it, and you should definitely talk to him about what you plan to do. If it were me, I'd talk to Reeve first about freeing him though. The government isn't likely to let Sephiroth go free and you probably don't want to get his hopes up."

"That's good advice," Cloud sighed. His sapphire eyes were troubled and distant as he turned his thoughts over in his head.

"Why don't I get you a beer to calm you down first?" Tifa offered. "We can talk about other things until you're ready to go home and make the call.

Cloud nodded and thanked her.

* * *

Sephiroth heard Cloud come in but he continued to work out. He had another thirty minutes to go until his scheduled routine was over. He counted silently as he did crunches, listening absently to the sound of his lover moving around downstairs. He faintly heard the electronic beeps as the blonde dialed a phone number but he hardly paid attention.

After he finished his repetition of stomach crunches, he rolled over to start on the pushups and he heard Cloud swear. The silver warrior paused with a frown, catching snatches of Cloud's hushed conversation on the phone. It sounded like he was arguing with whomever he was talking to and he was none too happy.

"Too much! Why can't you understand…didn't want this…can still watch over him but why can't I…"

As he heard bits and pieces, Sephiroth began to suspect that Cloud was talking about him. Logically if that were the case, he had every right to deliberately eavesdrop. However, he couldn't be certain and the thought of spying on his lover put a foul taste in his mouth. Cloud had always been honest with him so far. If the phone conversation was about him, Sephiroth was sure that the blonde would talk to him about it later.

Deliberately shutting out the sounds of the conversation reaching his ears, the general continued with his exercises and tried not to contemplate further over the matter.

* * *

"I was afraid this might happen eventually," Reeve said on the other end of the line. "Cloud, I understand how you feel. I know it's distasteful and believe me, I know what Sephiroth's life has been like. If I could do this for you I would and I'm sure you know that. We just can't let a man that's been convicted of being criminally insane run loose without supervision and you know that conventional methods wouldn't be enough to stop someone like him if things went south."

Cloud closed his eyes and sighed. "What about altering the chip, then? Isn't there some way you could reprogram the trigger so that it doesn't go off when I make simple comments? You can leave the sleep trigger and the prevention trigger but can't we do something about the simple commands?"

Reeve went silent for a moment, considering. "I suppose we could do something like that," he said slowly, "but Cloud, I'm really not comfortable opening up your skull again for non-emergencies. We'd also have to consider what perimeters you want to set because it's important that you retain some ability to instruct him for the good of society."

"I understand that," Cloud answered. "I know it's not minor surgery and I'm okay with that. Please, if there's anything you can do that would help me do this and still give him some sort of normal life, do it. Other people put away for insanity get the opportunity for freedom when they've proved they aren't insane anymore. I know he's a special case but he shouldn't have to live like this for the rest of his life."

"I'd like to agree with you, I really would," responded Reeve sincerely. "The thing is, Cloud, that the people you're talking about are usually one-time offenders, driven over the edge by circumstance."

"So was Sephiroth!" Cloud snapped.

"True, but his 'one time' took the lives of several people and destroyed a whole town. People that are released after suffering temporary madness usually killed one person in a fit of rage or self-defense, and they're rarely released without supervision. I'm sorry Cloud. I'll see what I can do to make it easier on you both, but the President and cabinet members aren't going to go for complete release…at least, not for a few years."

Cloud bowed his head and felt his throat burn with frustration. "Okay. Do whatever you can, Reeve. Call me when you can tell me something, okay?"

"It's a promise. In the meantime, try not to get worked up over it and enjoy being with him. Most people don't get second chances like this, after all."

"Yeah, I know. Goodbye." Cloud hung up the phone and rested his forehead against the wall, glad that he'd taken Tifa's advice and called first before letting Sephiroth know of his plans.

* * *

Cloud was so distracted that evening that he forgot to use potholders to remove the roast from the oven. Sephiroth heard his hiss of pain and the sound of the tin pan hitting the floor. He stopped setting the table and followed the sound, finding Cloud holding his rapidly reddening hands over the sink and struggling with the faucet. The roast somehow managed to fall without spilling out of the pan, but the hot juices had splattered all over the brick floor. Sephiroth paid no attention to it—his immediate concern was Cloud's hands.

Cloud thanked him in a small voice when he turned the taps on and guided his injured hands under the stream of water. His blue eyes were lowered and his mouth was pressed into a hard line of pain.

"Do you have any burn ointment in the house?" Sephiroth asked.

"There's a first aid kit I keep on the shelf in the garage," Cloud answered tightly, "I get little burns now and then when I work on Fenrir so I keep a jar in there."

"Just keep your hands under the faucet while I go and get it," Sephiroth ordered. He saw the blonde nod and he hurried to the garage, wondering what could have possessed Cloud to do something so stupid.

 _~As often as the two of us manage to get hurt lately, we should have enough medical supplies to start our own damned pharmacy.~_

Sephiroth shook his head and sighed as he entered the garage and searched the shelf on the back wall. He found the first aid kit and opened it, rummaging for the burn ointment. He found it and he took the roll of gauze he found as well.

 _~I think you and I are going to have to talk, Strife.~_

He would have preferred to let Cloud come to him with whatever was happening on his own time, but if it was distracting him enough to make him injure himself it needed to be addressed. Sephiroth strode back inside and to the kitchen with the gauze bandaging and ointment, finding Cloud where he left him. He set the bandages on the counter and then opened the lid of the jar and set it beside them before grasping the blonde's nearest wrist and guiding his hand away from the water.

Cloud mutely watched with a slight flush of embarrassment on his cheeks as the general pulled out the dishtowel drawer and produced a fresh one to pat his hand dry. The green eyes glanced at him briefly before fixating on the task of smearing the ointment over his blistering palms.

"Are you going to tell me what provoked you to make such a brilliant move, Cloud?" Sephiroth kept his eyes on his task and his tone was mildly curious, but the blonde was familiar enough with him by now to hear the subtle concern in his deep voice.

He tensed as his palm stung with Sephiroth's careful ministrations. "I..I didn't want to tell you," he whispered. "Not until I knew I could give you good news."

"Tell me what?" Sephiroth asked without pausing.

"That I wanted to free you."

Sephiroth went still, his pupils dilating subtly as he lifted his eyes from his work to stare at him. "Why?" he asked in a carefully neutral tone.

Confused, Cloud answered: "because I didn't want to give you false hope. I didn't want to tell you what I was planning to do until I could confirm they'd let me."

Sephiroth shook his head slowly, still holding the blonde's gaze with his own. "I mean, why do you want to free me? Do you really think that's a good idea?"

Cloud frowned at him, wondering why he seemed so ambiguous over the idea. "Well, yeah. I don't think its necessary anymore. I thought that would make you happy."

Sephiroth looked away and began to slowly wrap Cloud's hand in gauze. "One would think," he murmured.

Realization came to Cloud. "You're afraid," he whispered. When Sephiroth didn't answer, he pressed, "What are you afraid of? Is it freedom? Do you think you just wouldn't know what to do with yourself if you didn't have something restricting you? Talk to me."

Sephiroth finished with the first hand and he took the other one and started on it. "I am," he said reluctantly, "afraid of myself." The words dragged from his mouth as if painful to him and his lips twisted with distaste at the admittance.

It was a simple statement that was made vastly complex by the complicated nature of the man uttering it. Cloud knew that this proud man had never admitted to being afraid of anything in his life, if he'd ever even felt fear since childhood. The blonde felt pity again, only half-understanding. Jenova wasn't entirely gone and she may never be. As someone who was injected with her cells himself, Cloud could feel it. Sephiroth could probably feel her more than any being on the planet.

"Sephiroth, if you don't let go of that fear someday, you'll never be free," Cloud whispered earnestly.

"You've seen what could happen," he answered tonelessly.

"I know, but things are different. Hojo made it easy for Jenova to manipulate you, by keeping the truth hidden. She's practically just a ghost now and you know the truth. Have some faith in yourself."

 _~I do.~_

Sephiroth looked up again and saw the unspoken statement in the blonde's clear blue eyes. He studied his lover silently for a moment before allowing himself to lower his head and place a gentle, lingering kiss on his mouth. "Perhaps some day, you can teach me how," he suggested against the soft lips. "I suppose it doesn't matter anyhow. They declined your proposal, didn't they?"

"Yeah," Cloud said with downcast eyes. "I'm sorry. I'm working on a compromise with Reeve so that we can at least fix it so that I don't trap you in the bed or force you to do everyday things by accident. He at least agrees that the triggers are too extreme."

"I certainly wouldn't object to that," Sephiroth smirked, making Cloud flush again. "I don't relish the thought of you being hospitalized yet again, though."

Cloud smiled sweetly at him and Sephiroth cleared his throat and tore his attention away from the blonde's happy expression and back to treating his hand. He felt his cheeks warm as Cloud chuckled softly. "Is it so strange that I don't like the thought of my lover having more surgery?" he asked defensively.

"Not a bit," Cloud said, hissing a little as Sephiroth rubbed the ointment in. "It just makes me feel good when you show you care like that. What can I say, I'm mushy."

"Abysmally so," Sephiroth agreed, his lips quirking. "Tomorrow I want the doctor to look at your hands. Now go and sit down so that I can clean up and salvage our dinner."

Cloud smirked. "He's going to start getting funny ideas about us, as often as we end up hurt."

"We do seem to be prone to injury," Sephiroth agreed softly.

* * *

After they finished dinner, an idea occurred to Sephiroth. He despised feeling pitied by Cloud even as he loved his tender attentions. The blonde would never stop feeling guilty for his role as the silver-haired man's keeper and he would never believe he trusted him unless he made a meaningful gesture. If he could do it for Zackary, he could do it for Cloud.

"I'll be back soon. I forgot to buy more lubricant today and we'll need it before long." Sephiroth said as he pulled his jacket on and started out the door.

"All right." Cloud said, thinking nothing of it.

While he was out, Sephiroth bought a box of regular sized condoms along with the extra tube of lubricant. He was smiling softly as he returned home.

* * *

As they settled in for bed and began making out, Sephiroth made his final decision.

"Why don't we try something a little different this time, Cloud?"

The blonde paused in nibbling his lover's ear and drew back to look at him. "Just when I thought you've shown me everything you possibly could show me," he said with a grin. "What do you have in mind?"

"I want you inside of me."

Cloud's face took on one of those doll-like expressions of blank amazement that always made Sephiroth imagine him sitting on the shelf of an antique store. "Y-you mean it?" the blonde asked, blinking.

"Yes. Have you ever been inside of anyone before?" Sephiroth struggled not to laugh at the dumbfounded and revealing look on Cloud's face. He knew the answer just by looking at his expression, but it always amused him to see the blonde so flustered.

Cloud shook his head, his eyes still wide. "Nuh-uh. I mean, I've thought about it before but I've always bottomed and to tell you the truth, I wasn't even sure how you'd react if I fingered you during sex."

Sephiroth raised his eyebrows. "I'm surprised you couldn't find the nerve, considering that you've bitten me on the ass before."

Cloud lowered his eyes and shrugged. He held up his bandaged hands and frowned. "How can I be any good if I can't use these? Sure, my mouth works but—"

"I'll prepare myself," Sephiroth said, kissing his parted lips. "I'm sure I won't be disappointed with anything you do with your mouth. Oh, for future reference, Cloud; I might have been initially surprised to get fingered but I never would have stopped you."

Cloud swallowed, certain that he couldn't be any more surprised than he was now. He knew that Sephiroth had bottomed for Zack, since it was the only way they could have had intercourse at the time. He just assumed that with his personality he would never want to bottom again if he could help it. Nervousness assailed Cloud as Sephiroth began to help him out of his clothes.

"You're really sure about this?" Cloud asked huskily, laying back and lifting his hips as Sephiroth tugged on his pajama bottoms. "I don't think one of your condoms would fit me, to tell you the truth."

The general looked at him with amused emerald eyes. "Yes, I'm really sure about this, and I purchased a box of regular condoms while I was out. Don't make me repeat myself, Strife."

"You did?" Asked the blonde with surprise. He fell silent when Sephiroth raised a warning eyebrow at him.

Cloud looked so pretty, lying there with his innocent blue eyes, licking those tempting lips nervously. Unable to resist, Sephiroth finished pulling the garment off and stretched out beside the blonde to kiss him lingeringly. "You're acting like a virgin, Cloud. It's somewhat endearing." He slid his hand over the other man's thigh and traced the muscle with his fingertips, drawing a shiver of longing from the blonde.

"You took me by surprise, is all." Cloud's breath caught as Sephiroth's hand moved and began to fondle his swelling cock. "I hope I don't disappoint you."

"I'm sure you won't, given the skills you've shown me so far." Sephiroth squeezed the shaft he fondled and began to stroke the length steadily, making Cloud's breath quicken. Looking down at the shiny drop of moisture on the flushed cap, the general was compelled to lower his head and swirl his tongue around it.

"Sephiroth," Cloud gasped, arching against him with pleasure.

Knowing that they couldn't conduct his plans if he teased for much longer, the silver warrior stopped licking and pulled away, briefly admiring the flush of passion on his lover's face. He got out of the bed and untied the drawstring of his pajama bottoms before pulling them down and tossing them on the floor beside Cloud's. Naked now, he climbed back onto the bed next to his lover and reached into the drawer of the nightstand. Cloud's fingertips skimmed over his ass in a light, sensual caress and he smiled.

"You aren't completely unable to use your hands, it seems," Sephiroth commented as he selected a condom packet and took out the older tube of lubricant, figuring they wouldn't need to open the new one right away. He glanced sidelong at Cloud as the blonde's caressing fingers traced their way around to the front of his pelvis. He was being careful to only touch with his fingers, since both of his palms and his thumbs were bandaged.

Cloud smirked up at the silver-haired man. "Guess I just can't keep my hands off of you." He ran the fingertips teasingly over the general's long, thick cock and it bucked lightly under the attention, pleading for more. Fascinated, Cloud caressed the underside, making the organ lift again and harden further. Sephiroth's breath caught and the blonde smiled. "Tickle?" he asked as he circled the glans, massaging the ridge where it met the shaft as well as he could.

"In a good way," Sephiroth agreed, setting the condom and lube on the bed and stretching out beside him again. He pushed one long-muscled leg between Cloud's thighs and caressed his throat and chest. He lowered his mouth and kissed him deeply as he tweaked his nipples until they were hard, pink nubs. Cloud groaned softly and Sephiroth echoed him as the blonde rubbed the pad of his finger over the tender urethra entrance. He felt himself getting slick under the blonde's touch and his breath quickened.

Cloud maneuvered his way down Sephiroth's body and looked up at him questioningly, silently asking to suck him. Sephiroth's long fingers combed into his hair with consent and he rolled onto his back. Cloud wriggled his body in between Sephiroth's parted thighs and took the cap of his arousal into his mouth, flicking his tongue gently over the salty slit. He heard the other man's sharp intake of breath and he closed his lips tightly over the head and sucked on it, teasing with his tongue. He felt the powerful body of his lover shudder with pleasure and he took a little more in. For a while he just tasted and teased him, delighting in the responses he was invoking.

"Cloud," Sephiroth said in a low, demanding groan. Most other men would have carried a pleading note on their voices by this point, but Sephiroth didn't plead so much as order. Obeying the desire he heard in that tone, Cloud swallowed as much of his lover's girth as he could and then let the throbbing shaft slide out again, repeating the action over and over again until he felt Sephiroth's muscles turn to steel beneath his fingers. The general growled a warning, which Cloud ignored. His cum spurted hot and hard down the blonde's throat as he climaxed and Cloud swallowed all but a small bit of it eagerly.

When the last of the seed was emptied, Cloud released his lover from his mouth and stretched out on top of him. Knowing what was to come made him feel unusually aggressive—he kissed Sephiroth hard and let him taste the little bit of semen he'd saved in his mouth. The general tensed at first with the realization of what he tasted on his lover's tongue, but he returned the kiss and didn't object. He allowed the blonde to dominate the kiss for a change, slightly amused and completely aroused by unexpected assertiveness.

When Cloud ended the kiss, Sephiroth smirked up at him and purred; "Feeling more confident, are we?"

In answer, Cloud grabbed the condom package and stared at him with burning blue eyes as he pressed it into Sephiroth's hand. Taking the hint, Sephiroth tore it open and rolled it slowly onto Cloud's stiff arousal. He stroked it for a moment afterwards, making the blonde hum with delight and thrust into his hand.

"Well Cloud, how would you prefer to take me?"

The blonde grimaced for a moment and sucked in a sharp breath, prompting Sephiroth to frown at him. Cloud lowered his gaze and panted for a moment, holding up one bandaged hand to stay any forthcoming questions. Sephiroth wisely stopped rubbing his erection, feeling it buck warningly in his hand.

"Sorry, hearing you ask that almost made me lose it," he said breathlessly.

Sephiroth smirked. He could relate, having suffered a similar moment of heavy arousal the first time Cloud had asked the same of him. "Take your time," he advised softly.

Cloud stared down at that powerful, sculpted body and he had to go with his instincts. He couldn't imagine anything being more fulfilling at the moment than watching Sephiroth's face as he came into him. "I think I want you just the way you are—on your back," he said breathlessly.

Sephiroth didn't find it surprising, given Cloud's tender nature. He appreciated it, actually. He wanted to see the expressions on Cloud's face just as much as the blonde wanted to see the expressions on his. He reached out for the lube that was lying nearby and began the process of readying himself. Cloud stared at him while he rolled onto his side and worked his entrance with his lubed fingers. Having done this before under Zack's surveillance, Sephiroth wasn't shy about it.

Cloud gulped and wanted to kick his own ass up and down the hallway for damaging his hands and being unable to do this himself. At the very least, he wanted to massage Sephiroth's balls. Biting his lip with determination, he reached out with his right hand and caressed them anyway, provoking a sigh of pleasure from his partner. His palms stung with the motions but Cloud ignored it and kept fondling while he watched Sephiroth's long fingers slide in and out of his rectum.

 _~Hell, I don't know if I'll be able to last long. He's so hot and I wasn't expecting this at all!~_

That was one of the things about Sephiroth that made him so intoxicating though: his unpredictability. Cloud bent down and kissed his lover's outer thigh, trying to contain the desperate lust welling inside of him. It was like some new form of torture.

"I believe I'm ready for you, Cloud." The husky drone of Sephiroth's voice practically dripped with sensuality.

Cloud stopped fondling his balls and waited for him to roll onto his back again. He barely remembered to lube himself up before acting on the invitation. Taking a deep breath, Cloud stretched out on top of him and let his hips settle between his spread thighs. He looked into the mesmerizing emerald eyes and positioned himself carefully while Sephiroth's arms went around him. Whispering his name, Cloud rocked forward and felt the head of his dick squeeze past the tight ring of muscle. His lips parted and a groan exploded from them as Sephiroth cupped his ass and pushed him forward more. He was fascinated with the feel of the general's snug passage slowly taking him in.

Sephiroth's eyes slipped closed as his lover's cock slowly filled him. He grunted in surprise as the hard length brushed against the most sensitive spot and he squeezed Cloud's ass in response. Opening his eyes again, he looked up to see his lover's expression. Cloud's fair, youthful face was beaded with perspiration and he stared down at Sephiroth with a decidedly smitten expression. He shivered as he sank the rest of the way in, gasping the silver-haired man's name. Licking his lips, he drew back and thrust carefully again, his golden brows furrowing with pleasure and concentration. Sephiroth's eyes glazed as the blonde thrust again. He was surprised that Cloud had found the right angle so quickly—or maybe it was simply luck.

Cloud heard Sephiroth's soft, breathy groan on the second thrust and he couldn't resist kissing him again as he repeated the action. He moaned in answer against the general's lips and began to thrust instinctively, letting the pleasure and need drive him. His awkwardness slowly faded and with Sephiroth's hands guiding him, he found a rhythm that felt best. Moaning softly, he let himself go and showered gasping kisses all over Sephiroth's face and neck.

"Feels so good," Cloud panted, thrusting harder.

Sephiroth undulated beneath him, answering his moans with his softer, deeper ones. He caught Cloud's mouth and nibbled his lips as he bucked his hips to drive the blonde harder into him, making him cry out. Cloud answered with a hard push of his own that made Sephiroth's breath catch. He was more gentle than Zackary but no less passionate. For the first time, Sephiroth experienced what it was like to have someone's sex pressing against his prostate when he was able to feel the full range of sexual pleasure. He hardened against Cloud's stomach and the blonde's skin rubbed against his erection, adding more pleasure.

Cloud's breath became uneven as he neared his peak. He thrust his tongue into Sephiroth's mouth and bucked harder into him, provoked by the silver warrior's ragged encouragement and grasping hands. Cloud broke the kiss and clenched his jaw, struggling not to come too soon. He sensed that Sephiroth was getting close to another orgasm and he wanted to give it to him before he was spent. The serpentine eyes looked into his and widened subtly, the sinfully beautiful lips parting as the general's body began to tense beneath him.

Cloud felt Sephiroth's hard sex pulse against his stomach, followed by the slick release of his seed. Before he could smile in triumph, the feel of his lover's body clenching around his cock made his eyes go blank. With a great shudder, the blonde thrust hard into him one last time and came.

"Oh god," Cloud groaned as he fell against Sephiroth and tasted the sweat on the skin of his neck. He grunted and twitched again, pressing his mouth against his lover's skin to muffle another trembling cry. Sephiroth's chest heaved beneath him as he caught his breath and his hands released his bottom to stroke his back.

Cloud didn't want to move. He laid his cheek on Sephiroth's shoulder and stared blankly with heavy-lidded eyes as the pleasure of fulfillment faded to afterglow. He felt his lover nuzzle his hair and he sighed with contentment.

Sephiroth didn't ask him to withdraw or move. He just stroked his back and recovered his breath, enjoying the feel of the slighter man on top of him and inside of his most intimate place. The encounter had proved more satisfying than he thought it would. Cloud was a quick study and he hadn't allowed his inexperience to get in the way of his instincts. Sephiroth smiled and whispered, "And you thought you'd be a disappointment."

The blond head moved and a pair of sleepy sapphire eyes gazed into his, just inches away. "So I did okay?" he asked, still breathless from his release.

"More than that," Sephiroth answered honestly. "And you didn't even have the full use of your hands." He reached up and traced the blonde's lips with his fingertips, then cupped his chin and guided him to his mouth for another kiss. He felt Cloud smile against his lips and he stifled a chuckle.

* * *

A little more than a month later, Cloud slowly opened dazed eyes and looked around. He was in the medical facility of the WRO, again. His head hurt, again. He was confused, again. Then his eyes focused on the face looking down at him and his confusion ebbed away.

"Hey," He said with a smile, reaching up to comb his fingers through the fall of thick, silver hair cascading around that angelic face.

"This is the last time, Strife," answered the man gazing down at him. "We spend far too much time in medical facilities, for my liking."

Cloud grinned. "Shut up, Sephiroth."

The general considered the order. "How do you like that? Your order has no affect on me. Are you happy now?"

Cloud nodded and immediately groaned. Just as last time, his head hurt too much for motions of that sort. "I've still got my hair, right?"

Sephiroth smiled crookedly. "Of course."

"Good. As soon as I feel better, we can go home."

 _~Home,~_ Sephiroth reflected. For the first time in his life, he felt like he actually had one.

* * *

The End


End file.
